The Hayesville girls basketball team held on late to earn a 38-37 win against Highlands on Monday, Jan. 6, at home. This was the first of three games this week for Hayesville and a great chance for them to get their week started on a good note. The Lady Yellow Jackets have been struggling at times to get off to good starts, often putting themselves in holes that are hard to climb out of.

This proved to be the case against Highlands as the Lady Yellow Jackets found themselves down 10-2 at the end of the first quarter. Hayesville played pretty good defense and had some good looks on the offensive side of the ball, yet the shots were not falling and Hayesville had their lowest scoring quarter of the year. 

Coming into the second quarter, head coach Chad McClure made some adjustments and the team began to play completely different. The Lady Yellow Jackets came back in impressive fashion with 17 second-quarter points. Hayesville was led in the half by senior guard Jade Patterson who had 10 points, eight of which came in the second quarter to help give the Lady Yellow Jackets a 19-17 halftime lead.

The third quarter was all about the Lady Yellow Jackets stellar defense, as they managed to score just nine points in the quarter. Yet their strong team defense held Highlands to only five points in the frame. Hayesville got two big baskets from junior Kynnly McClure to lead them in the quarter. With all that put together, the Lady Yellow Jackets finished the third quarter with a 28-22 lead.

They would need every point of that lead coming into the fourth quarter to try and escape with a victory. The Lady Yellow Jackets and Highlands were both into the double bonus with several minutes left in the game. The last few minutes were a bit of a free-throw shooting contest with Highlands making double-digit fourth-quarter free throws. With Highlands down one with three seconds left, coach Jake Page drew up a great play and his team had a great shot as time expired. The ball went up and the gym was silent. The ball bounced off the rim on two sides before falling away and the cheers from the Hayesville side were loud as the Lady Jackets sealed a one-point win, 38-37.

In post game talks with Hayesville head coach Chad McClure, he said sometimes you just have to survive regardless of how you play. He was proud of his team for finding a way to win. Hayesville was led by senior Jade Patterson with 12 points and sophomore Lila Payne with nine points.

Hayesville travels to the Hiwassee Dam Lady Eagles on Tuesday night for a non-conference matchup.