Emily Gonzalez of Bearden goes in for two points during Bearden’s blowout win over Beech in the Class 4A state semifinals at MTSU’s Murphy Center on Friday, March 11, 2022. (Photo by Danny Parker).
BY JESSE SMITHEY
MURFREESBORO – Jennifer Sullivan might have been a bit eager for Friday’s Class 4A semifinal against Beech.
The Bearden High School senior guard prematurely darted out of one of the tunnels at MTSU’s Murphy Center and raced onto the floor for pregame warmups, leaving the rest of the Lady Bulldogs waiting for the actual buzzer to sound to send them out.
Sullivan sheepishly walked back 100 feet or so to the tunnel and into a huddle of smiles and laughs.
A little embarrassing? Sure.
But perhaps it loosened up the bunch.
“It made the nerves go away,” Bearden forward Maddie Brillhart said after the game.
“You’re welcome,” Sullivan quipped.
Bearden dismantled and dissected Beech, leading by 18 at the halftime break and going on to post a 74-55 victory that sent the Lady Bulldogs into a state championship for the first time in program history.
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Sullivan, a Miss Basketball finalist and Tennessee Tech signee, led four Bearden girls in double digits scoring with 17 points on 6-for-12 shooting. She added seven rebounds.
Junior post Avery Treadwell proved to be a menace all day to Beech, finishing with 15 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks.
Seniors Emily Gonzalez and Brillhart added 16 and 13 points, respectively. Brillhart was 3-for-6 from 3.
Bearden (35-3) will take on arch-rival Farragut (28-8) for the state title at 6 p.m. Central time Saturday at the Murphy Center. Bearden is 4-0 against Farragut this season and hasn’t lost to the Lady Admirals since 2017.
Bearden came out and scored with ease following the opening tip against Beech, with Sullivan burying a mid-range jumper shortly after Brillhart sank a 3-0. Just like that 5-0.
Bearden ultimately made six of 13 field-goal tries in the first quarter.
Beech guard Bri Ellis, a lefty, kept the Lady Bucs (23-13) close, though. She went 3-for-3 from the 3-point line in the first quarter and Bearden led by just one (16-15) after the opening eight minutes.
The Lady Bulldogs broke loose from Beech midway through the second quarter with a 13-0 run, spurred on by a 3 from the wing from senior reserve Hannah Claire Stephens with 4:43 left in the half.
Sullivan and Treadwell soon added 3-point plays at the 3:53 and 3:17 marks to push the advantage into double digits.
Meanwhile, Beech posted double-digit foul totals before the break, and Bearden took advantage. It went 12-for-13 at the line in the first half — Sullivan’s two with 11 seconds left giving Bearden a 40-22 lead at the end of the second quarter.
“I think we’re pretty hard to stop when we’re all clicking like that — especially with Hannah Claire when she comes in. She’s a vital 3-point shooter for us,” said Sullivan. “Whenever she makes big plays like that, I think it gets us all going.”
The onslaught poured into the second half, Treadwell got a couple easies down low and Gonzalez sank a 3 and Bearden led 47-24 with 5:30 left in the third.
Brillhart added at 3 at the midpoint of the third to double up the score, 50-25. A once 21-21 game was all but over with roughly 12 minutes to play.
Even Bearden’s bench got to enjoy the last couple minutes of the contest on the floor.
“We have seven seniors and juniors in our top seven and it shows in how they play,” said Underwood.
“It’s a special group,” he added, “that we don’t take for granted, as far as a willingness their willingness to share the ball, to play hard for each other and celebrate each other’s successes.”
THE SIDE BAR
For Sullivan and senior guard Bailey Burgess, the championship game Saturday will be their second in three years. The two guards helped The King’s Academy reach the Division II-A girls’ state final in 2020.
So Friday’s win and subsequent berth into another title game had extra meaning for them.
“It’s honestly like deja vu,” said Sullivan. “It’s the best feeling in the world. I still remember how it felt walking off the court my sophomore year, walking through the tunnel (after the loss). That’s really sat with me the last two years.
“Last year, it was so emotional for me (in Bearden’s first-round state loss), because of the year before that; I was expecting to get back to the state championship. And that just didn’t happen. So to be here, it’s a special feeling. I know it is for Bailey, too. When we were coming off the court (today), she was crying. She made me cry. She was like, ‘We’re going back.” It was just a surreal moment.”
5STAR PHOTOS: Bearden Lady Bulldogs vs. Beech – 2022 Class 4A Semifinals