Weekly Hayesville Yellow Jacket review/preview

Let’s start by taking a look at the Hayesville Yellow Jackets’ previous week. Dec. 22 through Dec. 28, the Yellow Jackets participated in the annual Battle of the States Christmas tournament hosted by Towns Co. High in Hiwassee. The Yellow Jackets played in three very tough, highly-competitive games. The Yellow Jackets finished the tournament 2-1, earning some hardware for their third-place finish. After several strong performances, sophomore Jake McTaggart earned all-tournament honors. 

In the first game of the tournament, Hayesville took on Polk Co. out of Tennessee. Polk Co. may have been the best team in the tournament and were solid at all positions. They even had the reigning player of the year from their conference on their team. Hayesville’s shots were not falling early and the team trailed at the end of the first quarter 15-11. The next three quarters were all Yellow Jackets as they controlled the game from the second quarter forward. Thanks to 30 points from McTaggart and 17 points from fellow sophomore Kolbe Ashe, the Yellow Jackets won 70-56. 

The Yellow Jackets advanced to the semifinals to take on host Towns Co. Simply put, the Indians wanted this game a little more at the start and the good start, along with the home crowd, was too much to overcome. The Yellow Jackets fell to the Indians in a heartbreaker, 67-64, despite a 28-point performance from McTaggart. 

In a game that would show the Yellow Jackets resolve, they played for third place in a game against the Lumpkin Co. Indians. Hayesville came out fired up and playing high-pressure defense getting out to a great start. Their were some ups and downs but Hayesville controlled the game. With three double-digit scorers – McTaggart 16, junior Brady Shook 13 and junior Blake McClure 11 – the Yellow Jackets won 57-45.

Coaches Corner weekly exclusive interview with head coach Michael Cottrell: 

1. How did you feel overall about your team’s performance in the Battle of the States tournament?

Felt ok about our week. Anytime you lose one down the stretch, we have a chance to teach and learn from it. We beat a really good team the first night. Thought we did some good things on both ends of the floor. The last night we beat a very competitive team and responded very well to the loss the night before.

2. It’s pretty incredible, the performances you have been getting out of your sophomores. Can you remember a time in your career getting this kind of production out of a sophomore?

Yes we have had good performances from both our sophomores. Both are learning fast and have very bright futures. We have had a few sophomores in the past that have performed well and our team needed them to play as upperclassmen. These two certainly fit that group. Very excited about there growth to this point.

3. With one game on the schedule this week what will practice this week be focused on?

Continue to work on defense. We also need to continue to understand our role on the team and settle into those roles. Every team is different and each year kids learn new skills that help the team grow.  

4. That one game being Towns Co. who upset you in the tournament. What do you do differently on Saturday to get a better outcome?

We just need to be more consistent on both ends of the floor. Stay within ourselves and focus on executing. This team is getting better and will continue to grow. By playoff time they could be a difficult team to handle.  

Weekly Preview:

The Hayesville Yellow Jackets (7-2, 4,0 Big Smoky Mountain 1-A) will be playing a rematch with border rival Towns Co. (8-3) on Saturday, Jan. 4, at home. Towns Co. is coming off a big win in the Battle of the States Christmas Tournament. Huge performances from Towns Co. juniors Aidan Berrong and Kolby Moss sprung the upset in the first matchup. Hayesville will have the advantage of rest with not having played since the tournament and Towns Co. playing Friday night, Jan. 3.

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