Mars Hill runs away from Cold Springs in 4th quarter to win 2A girls title

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBMA) — Cold Springs had a nearly perfect start to the 2A state championship game Friday morning at Legacy Arena. The Eagles did not allow a basket to Mars Hill for the first six minutes of the game, building a double-digit lead in the first quarter.

But the second quarter and the rest of the game belonged to the Panthers. Mars Hill used a 25-6 run to open the second quarter and grabbed a double-digit lead of its own, holding the lead the rest of the way. Cold Springs cut its deficit to six points in the third quarter but Mars Hill proved to be too much in the second half, leading by as many as 24 points on the way to a 69-47 victory.

Seventh-grader Belle Hill scored 11 of her 27 points in the game-turning second quarter and won the tournament MVP award. Mars Hill finished the season with a 26-5 record, earning its first state championship in girls basketball since 2005.

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Cold Springs (31-3) was led by Ella Dickerson who scored 16 points while Maci Brown contributed 14 points to go with three rebounds and three steals.

The Eagles shot 70 percent from the field in the opening quarter but missed 10 of their next 12 shots. They shot just 29 percent across the final three quarters.

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Hill led the Panthers in scoring, largely due to her performance at the free throw line where she shot 11-of-12. She also added eight rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block. Emma Kate Wright scored 16 points while Kadence Rolston finished with 11 points.

Mars Hill had the advantage in the paint, outscoring Cold Springs 26-20 on points in the paint. The Panthers also had a plus-12 advantage in rebounding, leading to 19 second-chance points.