By Shawn C White
The Minden Holiday Classic was held this past weekend and spread around Minden at Minden High School, Webster Parish Junior High and the Minden Recreation Complex.
Calvary Baptist (9-4) won back-to-back Holiday Classic titles with a 20-4 run in the second half to surpass Ringgold (12-4) in the 52-43 win.
Division IV state runner-up Arcadia Lady Hornets (13-1) captured their third tournament title in the 2023 season by getting the 50-33 over the Minden Crimson Lady Tide (7-5).
Arcadia 50, Minden 33
Minden was led by Travesti Byrd who bucketed 17 points in the finals. Brooklyn Jefferson added 14.
Arcadia’s lead scorer was Most Valuable Player DeAsia Alexander who scored 15. Arianna Williams netted 11 points.
Defense prevailed in the first quarter as Arcadia had a slight 6-4 lead.
Alexander had an explosive second quarter scoring 11 and holding Minden to only two points. Arcadia carried a 19-6 halftime lead.
Minden made a comeback in the third quarter as Jefferson and Byrd each added 9 and cut Arcadia’s lead to 32-24.
Arcadia spread the scoring around among Rhyanna Abney, Justice Young, Williams, and Alexander and pushed the Lady Hornets to the title.
Calvary 52, Ringgold 43
The lead scorer for the champion Cavaliers was Bubba Strong with 21 points. MVP Rondae Hill bucketed 17 points. Tyrone Jamison scored 11 for the Cavs.
Ringgold’s Ladaunte McCoy led with 17 points. Jabari Adams netted 14.
The two were knotted 6-6 in the first quarter. Hill was the only Cavalier who could score in the quarter.
The scoring opened in the second period as Ringgold’s Jbari Adams buried 8 points and Calvary’s Jamison added 6. Ringgold took the 22-18 lead into halftime.
Ringgold looked to have started taking control as McCoy took an 8-point third quarter. Ringgold had expanded their lead to 39-31 lead into the final quarter.
Ringgold went cold as Calvary began to catch fire in the final quarter. Calvary began to push the full-court press and frustrated Ringgold. A technical foul seemed to swing the momentum in the Cavalie’s favor. Calvary outscored Ringgold 21-4 in the final quarter to capture back-to-back titles at the Holiday Classic
Tournament Results
Girls
1st Round
Homer 36, Richwood 33
Simsboro 37, Lakeside 13
Gibsland-Coleman 53, North Caddo 21
Mansfield 48, Green Oaks 1
Championship – Quarterfinals
Minden 57, Ringgold 50
Homer 36, Simsboro 33 OT
Arcadia 52, Loyola 20
Mansfield 52, Gibsland-Coleman 31
Consolation – Quarterfinals
Richwood 31, Lakeside 13
North Caddo 35, Green Oaks 12
Championship – Semifinals
Minden 39, Homer 30
Arcadia 43, Mansfield 29
Consolation – Semifinals
Richwood 53, Ringgold 37
Championship – Finals
Arcadia 50, Minden 33
Consolation – Finals
Richwood 49, Loyola 16
Boys
1st Round
Ringgold 49, Green Oaks 33
Mansfield 48, Lakeside 24
Gibsland-Coleman 54, Loyola 42
Parkway 74, Camden (AR) 50
Championship – Quarterfinals
Minden 77, North Webster 23
Ringgold 5, Mansfield 40
Calvary 75, Lincoln Prep 29
Parkway 95, Gibsland-Coleman 40
Consolation – Quarterfinals
Green Oaks 64, Lakeside 18
Camden (AR) 45, Loyola 33
Championship – Semifinals
Ringgold 60, Minden 45
Calvary 76, Parkway 63
Consolation – Semifinals
Green Oaks 63, North Webster 49
Camden (AR) 66, Lincoln Prep 45
Championship – Finals
Calvary 52, Ringgold 43
Consolation – Finals
Camden (AR) 47, Green Oaks 35
All-Tournament Teams
Girls
DeAsia Alexander, Arcadia (MVP)
Jakyria Cockerham, Arcadia
Rhyanna Abney, Arcadia
Travesti Byrd, Minden
Brooklyn Jefferson, Minden
Shaniya Webb, Homer
Boys
Rondae Hill, Calvary (MVP)
Bubba Strong, Calvary
TJ Jamison, Calvary
Jbari Adams, Ringgold
Jordyn Wilson, Ringgold
Brhaylen Brown, Parkway