CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – The Clarksville Lady Wildcats took a trip to Exit 8 for the “Battle of Warfield Boulevard” at Rossview High School on Friday. A physical, defensive contest saw the Wildcats pull away late, led by 19 second-half points by guard Shakia Vance, for a 33-22 district win.

The first half was an absolute brawl, with each team having to scratch and claw for each bucket and possession. The Hawks were up 8-4 after the first quarter, but the Wildcats started the second quarter on a 9-0 run, holding the Hawks over six and a half minutes without a score. In a game where scoring was so hard to come by, that run was monumental.

“Resiliency is something we’ve talked about all year. We didn’t play our best ball in the first, but we bounced back quickly,” said Wildcats head coach Ellie Claus. “Every quarter is a fresh start, and I was confident that my team would be able to fight back from it.”

The Wildcats held a slim three-point lead at the half, mostly due to the first-half work of Hawks guard Milania Peak, who kept them in the contest early, and ended the game as the Hawks’ leading scorer with 11. However, the second half was the Shakiah Vance show, scoring all 19 of the Wildcats’ second-half points, including three triples, to lead Clarksville to a district win on their rivals’ home floor. Vance ended the night with 24.

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“This was an important game to us; this season, early on has been rough, so we knew we needed this one,” said Vance. “I couldn’t have done it without my teammates, and they helped me in so many ways tonight.”

Coaches’ corner

Despite an at times herculean defensive effort, the Hawks couldn’t get shots to fall consistently enough to pull out a win. Despite the result, Hawks head coach Drew Smith is still confident in his squad moving forward.

“Defensively, we grew a ton tonight,” said Smith. “The way our girls executed the zone tonight was near flawless, and I know we are disappointed, but we played a heck of a game, just on one end of the floor. We can sit here and talk about whatever we want, but there’s no reason we can’t be confident we can win against that team.”

As for Clarksville, it’s a big win, the first in Claus’ career against Rossview, along with her first district victory in her first try at both.

“It’s the best possible way to open district play,” said Claus.” I’m proud of my kids for bouncing back from a bad game on Tuesday. Being able to come out and put four quarters together was a huge accomplishment. Yeah, we won, that’s cool, but tomorrow we’re back to work.”

| MORE: Rossview’s offensive onslaught overpowers Clarksville in Battle of Warfield Boulevard | PHOTOS