On Friday night, the Hayesville Yellow Jackets had a tough matchup in the SMC tournament final. The Yellow Jackets were matched up with Swain, and it was the fourth time they have played already this season. Their first matchup at Hayesville went to overtime, with the Yellow Jackets pulling it out. Then the last two matchups at Swain saw the Yellow Jackets pull away to win by 25 or more each time. This was their third straight game at Swain, and just like the previous two, Hayesville proved to be too much, winning comfortably 77-54.

Logan Caldwell nails a free throw.

1st Half:

The game started a little slow, with each team feeling their way into the game. Hayesville got to an early 8-0 lead as Swain could not get anything to fall against the tough Yellow Jacket defense early in the first quarter. The Maroon Devils, though, would battle back and decrease the lead by the end of the quarter trailing 14-10. The second quarter was all Hayesville as the Yellow Jackets proved why they are the #1 team in all of 1A North Carolina. Hayesville would score 26 points in the quarter, led by Jake Mctaggart, who had an incredible 18 points in the quarter. Swain had no answer for Mctaggart, who was scoring from all three levels—draining several long threes, hitting fade-away jumpers, and finishing strong inside. This led the Yellow Jackets to have a 40-24 lead going into halftime.

2nd Half:

Hayesville would come out in the third quarter and leave no doubt pulling away from Swain. The Yellow Jackets had another big scoring quarter led by Kolbe Ashe, who had eight points in the quarter. He got plenty of help, too, as five Yellow Jackets scored in the quarter. By the time the fourth quarter started, Hayesville was leading by 26 and would cruise to a comfortable victory. The Yellow Jackets were in complete control for four quarters. With Swain for the fourth time this year unable to find a way to slow down the Yellow Jackets. Hayesville went on to win 77-54 to stay undefeated going into the NCHSAA playoffs.

Asher Brown finishes strong at the rim on the drive.

Hayesville Leading Scorers:

Jake Mctaggart 26 points

Kolbe Ashe 17 points

Logan Caldwell 12 points

Ethan Hooper 9 points

Asher Brown 8 points

Postgame Quotes from Hayesville Head Coach Michael Cottrell:

• “I think Swain is an excellent team, and anytime you can beat a team like that on their home court, it helps you going into the playoffs. A really solid win for us.”
• Asked about earning the #1 seed for playoffs: “We have to take it one game at a time; there are a lot of quality teams in 1A this year. It is going to be a tough road, but these guys are playing really well right now so we will see.”

Ethan Hooper leads the Hayesville fastbreak.

Hayesville will next play tentatively on Tuesday, February 22nd, in the first round of the NCHSAA playoffs. Coaches from both teams can always agree to play the game a day earlier. Stay tuned to the TeamFYNSports Twitter and Facebook pages. We will have all the playoff updates and schedules and times as soon as we find out from the state and local teams.