Christian Heritage girls pull off road win over Lake Oconee Academy to reach state Elite 8

Published 9:45 pm Friday, February 23, 2024

Just two seasons after going winless, the Christian Heritage School girls basketball team is headed to the Class A DII state quarterfinals.

The Lady Lions (18-11) went on the road to knock off Region 8-A DII champion Lake Oconee Academy (20-9) 49-47 in Greensboro Friday to advance to the Elite 8 for the first time since the 2018 squad reached the quarterfinals.

Christian Heritage will go on the road to play Montgomery County in the state quarterfinals.

Christian Heritage led 33-24 at the end of the third quarter and survived a huge rally by Lake Oconee to take home the road win.

The Lady Lions trailed 12-10 after the first, led 19-16 after the second and built the lead to nine after the third.

After Christian Heritage allowed just 12 points combined of Lake Oconee in the middle two quarters, the home team exploded for 23 in the fourth to nearly erase the Christian Heritage lead.

Carly Bramlett led the way for Christian Heritage with 16 points. Brooklyn Stallion scored 14. London Wagner, Alli Grace Hembree and Taylor Fisher all scored five.

Christian Heritage reaches the state quarterfinals just two years after going 0-19. Last year’s Lady Lions squad went 12-14 and reached a first-round game in the playoffs, while, under first-year head coach Josh Hembree, this year’s team will finish with a winning record and has now matched the school’s 2018 team for the deepest playoff run in program history.