PageDecember 3B THE 16, NORTH 2020 THEGEORGIA NORTH NEWS GEORGIA December NEWS 16, 2020Page 3B Hot-shooting Rebels storm back from 19-down in 50-49 win over Union Chambers and Hunter combine for 34 points in 58-47 loss to Lady Rebels By Todd Forrest Sports Editor [email protected]

Blue Ridge - In the only action of the week, Union County suffered a pair of losses at Fannin County, despite a game-changing run in each contest that erased a 13-point deficit in the girls’ game and sparked a 19-point advantage for the Union men. Lady Panthers 47, Fan- nin County 58 - Union County (1-3) fell behind 20-7 in the opening frame before a 13-0 run tied the score at the midway point of the second. The Lady Panthers even- tually built a 30-26 third-quarter lead thanks to a 23-6 surge that saw junior Rebekah Chambers account for 12 of her team’s first 28 points. At the end of the day, the Lake Hughes Union County frontcourt duo of Chambers and Ava Hunter combined for 34 points, with Hunter pouring in a team-high 18 points - 13 in the second half. Chambers and Hunter started the scoring for the Junior Ava Hunter led Union County with 18 points in a physical rivalry Junior Rebekah Chambers puts the finishing touches on a Lady Pan- Lady Panthers with one basket game at Fannin County on Saturday afternoon. Photo/Todd Forrest thers’ fast break with a lay-in at Fannin. Photo/Todd Forrest apiece, plus two free throws were scheduled to visit Union sandwiched in between. Trail- Union extended its lead board and Cox pushed Union by Chambers during the first County earlier in the week but ing 20-14 after one, Fannin to 33-29 early in the third ahead 46-43 with another steal- five minutes. However, Fannin backed out due to COVID-19. started the second frame with when Austin Taylor followed and-score. County (6-2) was lights out This week’s lone contest was two triples in 44 seconds to knot a Rebels’ free throw with a The Rebels put back an from beyond the arc in the early also canceled - a visit to Gilmer the game at 20-20. 3-pointer from the wing. But a air-ball to pull within one be- going, connecting on three treys on Thursday. Junior Keyton Chitwood Fannin County trey punctuated fore returning to their bread and in the first period to build a Union County is tenta- slowed the bleeding with a five-straight points for a 34-33 butter - sinking a triple for a 20-7 lead. tively scheduled to host Class put-back - Union County’s Rebels’ advantage. 48-46 advantage at the midway A Hunter free throw AAA North Hall at 6 p.m. on first field goal in nearly 5 1/2 Underwood responded point of the fourth. made it 20-8 after one while Monday, Dec. 21. minutes - but the Rebels scored with five-straight all by himself Union’s final field goal sparking 13-unanswered from Fannin County 50, four straight, including 2-of-3 - beginning with a corner-3 and came via a floater in the lane the visitors. A 3-point play by Union County 49 - The Pan- at the line after drawing a foul followed by a back-door lay-up by John, courtesy of a Fannin Chambers pulled Union within thers (0-4) jumped out to an behind the arc. via Cox’s dribble-drive assist. turnover, tying the score one single digits just seven seconds early 19-0 lead with three Hughes hit a pair of free Fannin pulled within a final time at 48-48 until Fannin into the second frame. Then, a minutes left in the first quarter, throws to tie the game at 24- point but Hughes connected went up for good, 50-48 with Hunter put-back was followed but less than four minutes later, 24 but Fannin County quickly from the corner to keep Union 3:09 left. by another and-one by Cham- Fannin (3-2) rallied to even the pushed its margin to 28-24 at in front at 41-37. Another Reb- The fourth quarter saw Kaston Hemphill bers, trimming the margin to score at 20-20. the 2:55 mark, closing out a els’ 3 kept the margin at one five lead changes and two ties Chitwood added 2 points in 5 20-16. Despite two offensive 28-5 run. before Hemphill closed the but the Panthers could not force minutes. Fannin County shot The Lady Panthers drew explosions in the first nine A Hughes trey sparked a period with a 1-for-2 visit to the crucial sixth and final lead 9-for-19 from long distance and even at 20-20 when sophomore minutes, the rest of the con- 6-0 Union County spurt to end the line. change despite Fannin going 17-for-34 overall but struggled Corinne Hill drained a mid- test was a see-saw battle that the first half up 30-28. The Pan- Fannin started the fourth scoreless over the final 3:09. at the line, hitting just 7 of 17. range jumper and junior Ansley ended with Union’s potential thers’ six-unanswered included by sinking 3-of-4 at the charity Cox finished with 4 Union County will host Collins drove the baseline. game-winner falling short as a Cox lay-up off a turnover and stripe, but Kight put his squad points and 3 rebounds, Taylor North Hall on Monday, Dec. Fannin, who momentarily the buzzer sounded. a Hemphill free throw. back in front with an offensive had 3 points and one assist, 21. cooled off from long distance, Leading 46-43 with 6:52 ended a six-minute-plus scor- remaining, the Panthers sur- ing drought with a triple at the rendered five-straight points but NASCAR 2020 3:32 mark of the second. But junior guard Caleb John turned By Gerald Hodges/the Racing Reporter Union scored the final points a steal on the defensive end into of the half when a Lara Turner the equalizer on the other end at Janet Guthrie: A Life at Full Throttle lay-up was the end result of a the 3:48 mark. Old-time NASCAR fans community. perfectly-executed press break The Rebels regained the will remember 1977 as the year “The is one by the Lady Panthers. lead 50-48 on the ensuing pos- when Janet Guthrie became the of the greatest spectacles in all Union outscored Fannin session, but Hemphill split two first woman to qualify for the of sports, and fans from all over 14-2 in the second quarter as free throws to pull Union within Daytona 500. the world converge in Daytona Chambers entered the half with a point as the clock approached But there are many other Beach to be a part of motor- a team-high 10 points, followed two minutes. aspects of her career unknown sport’s biggest day,” said Day- by five from Hunter. Still trailing 50-49 with to most racing fans that brings tona International Speedway The Lady Rebels struck 50 seconds remaining, the her to the forefront of the auto- President Chip Wile. “While we first in the third when they Panthers were whistled for an mobile racing. Remarkably, she won’t be able to have a capac- was only following her heart, or ity crowd here in February, we grabbed an offensive board extremely ticky-tack three-sec- passion, as she calls it. and were fouled on the ensuing ond violation. And after Union are excited that we can host the “It was very clear that in Daytona 500 with those in at- bucket, resulting in a 3-point could not force a turnover, there 1972, I was having a big midlife tendance, as well as for the mil- play and a 26-22 lead. But the was some confusion regarding crisis,” said Guthrie. lions who will tune in live on Lady Panthers responded with which player was supposed to Guthrie had been racing FOX.” eight-straight to cap off the 23-6 commit the clock-stopping foul, for nine years, but in 1972, she As a result of the seat- run that originated in the final sending Fannin to the line with quit a well-paying and secure ing capacity limitations, the seconds of the opening frame. only six seconds to play. job with an Aerospace company Speedway will work to accom- The 8-0 stretch began The Rebels missed the to go racing. To support herself, modate guests who have already when Hunter went to work front-end of the 1-and-1 and she relied on a series of odd purchased tickets to the 2021 down low for two; then Turner Hemphill pulled down the jobs. Daytona 500. To ensure social evened the score with a steal board, then quickly turned and What made her do this? distancing between groups who “Passion is what life is will be in attendance, many fans under the Fannin basket as fired to John, who raced down about,” she continues. “I wanted Union applied some full-court will be reseated in new loca- the sideline. As he passed the to be where my passion was, and tions. The reseating process pressure. Chambers showcased Union bench, head coach Corey racing is where I found it.” is expected to be complete by her range with a 15-footer from Garrett called a timeout with To understand why a early January. the wing - giving her team its 2.4 seconds left to set up one woman would act as Guthrie All guests will be screened first lead of the day. The Union final play. did, you must fi rst look into her before entering the facility and County advantage swelled With John inbounding early life.. will be required to wear face to 30-26 when Turner sank a uncontested from in front of Before becoming the first coverings while maintaining six jumper from the corner with his Panthers teammates, neither woman ever to compete in the feet social distancing through- Janet Guthrie in 1978 5:11 left in the third. Landon Cox or Lake Hughes and the Dayto- out their visit. Unfortunately, Fannin could shake their defender, na 500, Guthrie had a diversified Indianapolis. years – lack of sponsorship. NASCAR did not say how County responded with a 14-2 resulting in a forced pass to background. By the time she “I tested and qualified one She failed to get even many fans would be allowed in was 16, she had her pilot’s li- of A.J. Foyt’s cars for the 1976 one overture from other teams, the 100,000 seat stadium, but run for a 40-32 lead at the 1:19 a blanketed Daniel Snow at cense and was an accomplished Indianapolis 500, and I made the mark of the period. Two Lady including small, underfunded it is estimated about 15-20,000 the elbow. Snow, falling away parachute jumper. field,” she said. “But come race operations. will be tops. Rebels free throws tied the against a taller defender, came “I was born adventure- day, A.J. decided to put a man “Oh, it was a really ter- Schedule: Tues., Feb. 9: score at 30-30, just shy of the up short on a turn-around baby- some,” she said. in the car, and I no longer had rible period of time,” Guthrie 43rdAnnual Busch Clash (Day- 3-minute mark before Hunter hook from the high post. She was born in Iowa a ride.” said. “I mean, ’78, ’79, ’80, ’81, tona Road Course under the put Union back in front one Hughes led Union Coun- City, Iowa, on March 7, 1938. Even though she didn’t ’82, ’83, all those years I spent lights), Wed., Feb. 10: DAYTO- final time, scoring via an of- ty with a season-high 13 points Her family moved to Miami, get to race at Indy that year, every living moment attempting NA 500 Qualifying, Thur., Feb. fensive board. Trailing 32-30, to go with 5 rebounds and 2 when she was three. She the fact that she made the field to find backing to continue rac- 11: Duel At Daytona qualifying Fannin rattled off 10-straight, steals. Hemphill also turned in attended Miss Harris’ Florida was headline news coverage ing at the top levels. races, Fri, Feb. 12: NextEra En- ignited by a trey and 3-for-4 a season-high with 9 points and School for Girls for all but one throughout the county. Her name “Finally, in 1983 I realized ergy 250 NASCAR Camping shooting on consecutive visits 8 boards. Additionally, the Pan- of her elementary through high- was even overshadowing what that if I kept it up, I was going to World Truck Series race, Sat, to the charity stripe. school years, and then graduated was happening with NASCAR jump out of a high window. That Feb. 13: Xfinity Series and Lu- thers were +8 with Hemphill on from the University of Michigan at . Sophomore Ellie Cook the court. was when I quit doing that and cas Oil 200 (ARCA Menards) in 1960 with a B.S. in physics. “Humpy” (Wheeler) started working on a book. doubleheader. stemmed the Lady Rebel surge John, Landon Kight and She went on to become was agitated that I was taking “I was very disappointed Racing Joke: Harry, an with a jumper and Hunter split Eli Underwood scored 6 points a pilot and flight instructor, an away press coverage from the that I was unable to race more. I 80-year-old retired driver, went a pair of free throws to stay each, with Kight fouling out aerospace engineer, a technical World 600,” continued Guth- wasn’t able to get sponsors and to see his doctor to get a physi- within seven after three quar- and John battling foul trouble. editor, and a public representa- rie. “A friend of mine worked it was either quit or jump out a cal. ters. Hunter began the fourth Union County was +13 tive for some of the country’s at the speedway and she told a window, that’s how much pas- A few days later, the doc- with an and-one for a 42-38 with John on the floor. The major corporations. lady named, Linda Ferreri, who sion I felt for the sport.” tor saw Harry walking down the Fannin County lead, but a fast- junior guard also shot 3-for-3 She joined Republic Avia- in turn bought a car for me to Janet Guthrie’s helmet and street with a gorgeous young break lay-up and another Lady from the floor and dished out a tion in Farmingdale, New York, drive.” driver’s suit are in the Smithso- lady on his arm. Rebels trey pushed the differ- team-high 3 assists. as a research and development In 1977, she became the nian Institution, and she was one A few days later, on a re- ence out to 49-40. Consecutive Kight added 5 boards engineer, working on programs first woman to qualify for and of the first athletes named to the turn visit, the doctor spoke to inside buckets by Chambers that were precursors to Project compete in the Indianapolis 500; Women’s Sports Hall of Fame. Harry again, and said, “You’re and 2 dimes; Underwood had 6 Apollo. In 1964, she applied she was also the first woman and kept Union within two pos- rebounds, one steal and finished The 82-year-old Guthrie really doing great aren’t you?” for the first Scientist-Astronaut top rookie at the Daytona 500 in continues to live in Aspen, Col- Harry replied, “Just doing sessions at the 5:30 mark, but with a +3 plus/minus. program, and got through the the same year. She finished ninth orado. While she keeps up with what you said, doctor: Get a hot Fannin responded with back- Hemphill scored 6 of first round of eliminations. She in the Indianapolis 500 in 1978. racing by watching it on TV, she mama and be cheerful.” to-back triples to take control Union’s first 12 points while treasures a letter from astronaut “She was right up there doesn’t attend many races. The doctor responded. “I at 55-44. Hughes and Kight knocked Deke Slayton, a memento of with the best of the men,” said DAYTONA 500 didn’t say that. I said, you’ve got Hunter converted a down a 3 during the 19-0 run. that attempt. Bobby Allison. TO ALLOW FANS a heart murmur. Be careful.” 3-point play with 4:27 to play, Kight also went 1-for-2 at the Her first racing experi- After competing in 31 The 63rd Annual Day- Racing Trivia Question: but the Lady Panthers wouldn’t line when the Fannin coach re- ence came in a Jaguar XK 120 NASCAR races between 1976- tona 500 will play host to a lim- What year was the first Daytona score again, and Fannin put the ceived a technical foul less than coupe in Sports Car Club of 78, Guthrie couldn’t get a ride ited number of fans. 500 run? game away 90 seconds later three minutes into the contest. America races. Her career in and was forced to sit out the The reduced venue ca- Last Week’s Question: with its fourth-straight 3-ball to John added four points physics slowly yielded to the al- 1979 season. She returned for pacity for the 2021 NASCAR How many Cup Series races did lure of sports car racing, and by two final starts in 1980, includ- Cup Series opener, set for Sun- Kyle Busch win in 2020? An- close out a 58-47 victory. to the early outburst, hitting a 1972 she was involved in racing ing being Dale Earnhardt’s The freshman Turner day Feb. 14, as well as all events swer. One. The October race at short jumper then driving to on a full-time basis. Along the teammate in that year’s Daytona part of Daytona Speedweeks Texas. finished with 6 points; Cook the hoop to cap the 19-0 start. way, she posted two class victo- 500. He finished fourth, she was (Feb. 9-14), is due to the ongo- Gerald Hodges is a syndi- added three; Collins and Hill Later, Underwood split a pair at ries in the 12 Hours of Sebring. 11th. ing COVID-19 pandemic, and cated NASCAR writer and au- rounded out the Union County the charity stripe to round out She had 13 years of expe- The reason for her de- is in accordance with enhanced thor. His books may be viewed scoring with two each. Union’s first-quarter scoring. rience on sports car road-racing parture was perhaps the one safety protocols and procedures and ordered online at Amazon. Class A Private’s 10th- The Rebels heated up circuits, building and maintain- element Guthrie ultimately had to provide a safe environment com. You may contact him by e- ranked Tallulah Falls and from downtown, sinking four ing her own race cars, before most in common with countless for guests, NASCAR competi- mail at: [email protected]. Class AAA White County treys with a steal-and-score being invited to test a car for male race car drivers over the tors, employees and the local