Chestatee (12-12), which lost in overtime the last time it faced the Lady Knights, got off to a sluggish start, scoring only six points in the first quarter and entering halftime down 26-15. Johnson (4-19, 3-9 7-AAA) used a 9-2 run late in the second quarter to take the lead, after also starting out slow with only 10 first-quarter points.

The Lady Knights were paced by Shekeria Cooper and Haley Chapman, who tallied 16 and 15 points respectively.

Chestatee used a 14-4 run, including four 3-pointers to open the third quarter and pull within a point of Johnson, 30-29. After a Johnson layup, Chestatee freshman Melissa Bailey knocked in a 3 from the corner to tie the game at 32-32.

In its ensuing possesion, Chestatee took the lead on a Kasey Smith layup, and never looked back.

Freshman Peyton Robertson and sophomore Chelsea Wilson dropped in 15 and 14 points respectively for Chestatee, each scoring 11 points in the second half. Robertson added 12 rebounds and four blocks, and Smith added 12 for the Lady War Eagles, who held Johnson to only six third quarter points.

A couple of late free-throws and a 6-1 run in the fourth quarter secured the win for Chestatee, which shot 10-for-19 from the charity stripe.

The Lady Knights shot 10-for-17 from the line, also making eight 3-pointers.

After the Lady War Eagles took a 51-47 lead with under ten seconds remaining, Johnson made it interesting with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer by Chapman to bring the score within one at the game’s end.