Golden Eagles End Regular-Season GCAA Play with Wins

The Golden Eagles capped off their regular-season GCAA schedule with wins over Central Georgia Tech on Sunday night at the Smyrna Community Center, as the women won a 76-73 thriller and the men cruised to an 86-63 win.

The men’s team elevated its record to 18-11, 8-10 in conference, while the women improved to 13-15 and 6-12. The women’s team has clinched a spot in the upcoming eight-team conference tournament; the men’s team is currently in line for a GCAA tourney spot with the seventh seed but must wait until other contenders finish their conference schedules.

The Lady Golden Eagles trailed 46-41 at the half in a fast-paced ball game, but overtook the Lady Cougars late in the second half on the strength of the overall play of center Tequilla Vaughns and the scoring of Tiayra Green. Vaughns ended up with 22 points and 16 rebounds to go along with four blocks, three assists and three steals while shooting 10-of-21 from the floor. Green finished with 21 points, and Tyresha Williams contributed 17. Kimbra Warr dished out 11 assists.

Green’s two free throws with under 10 seconds remaining in the game pushed the lead to three points, and the Lady Golden Eagles forced a turnover on the ensuing CGT possession to seal the win.

The women shot 48 percent from the field and had nine blocks and 10 steals as a team while outrebounding Central Georgia Tech 45-38.

The men’s team opened up a big lead early, starting the game on a 12-2 run and never looking back. The Golden Eagles held a 40-27 advantage at halftime thanks to 12 first-half points from both Sean Tate and Brannon Hopkins. Hopkins ended with 23 points to lead all scorers, hitting on 4-of-9 3-point attempts, while Tate finished with 15 points, 12 assists and three steals.

Jay Ellis also had a strong offensive night, going for 11 points on 5-of-6 shooting from the field. James Henderson contributed eight assists, and center Asauhn Dixon-Tatum, the NJCAA’s national leader in blocks at over five per game, erased five more shots on the night.

The men’s team will conclude its regular-season slate with a non-conference game against Macon State at the J.H. Morgan Gym in Cartersville on Sunday, Feb. 26.