Top 15 most memorable games in Gibson County from 2023-24 season

By Michael Odom | June 4, 2024 |

Gibson County won the Class 2A state championship in March 2024.

With the 2023-24 school year wrapping up last week with Spring Fling, I want to look back at some of the best that Gibson County had to offer this year. And boy there were some great things that happened in the county this year.

This week, we will look back at the top 15 most memorable games from the past year

All 15 of these games had some significance behind them, and it was definitely hard to narrow it down to 15.

1. Gibson County girls basketball wins Class 2A state title over Loretto: The Lady Pioneers added a fourth state championship to their trophy case by winning the Class 2A crown for the first time since 2019.

Gibson County beat Loretto 49-37. Miss Basketball winner Micah Hart scored 20 points to go with seven rebounds, while A’Kira Riding added 12 points and Sania Reaves had eight points and eight rebounds.

The Lady Pioneers were down four points at halftime, but tied the game after three quarters (32-32) and outscored Loretto 17-5 in the fourth quarter.

South Gibson’s Hallie Allen drives to the basket against Chester County during a Class 3A state quarterfinal in March 2024.

2. Hallie Allen’s 3-pointer sends South Gibson girls basketball to Class 3A semifinals: With 3.5 seconds on the clock, Karson Dunn found Hallie Allen open in front of the Lady Hornets’ bench for a 3-pointer to help South Gibson beat Chester County 34-31 in the Class 3A quarterfinals.

Allen finished with 13 points.

South Gibson trailed 31-27 with 1:14 to play. But Natalie Lewis hit a 3-pointer with 1:00 on the clock to cut the deficit to 31-30. After a Dunn steal, Allen was sent to the free throw line, and she hit a free throw to tie the game 31-31 with 32.3 seconds to play.

3. South Gibson girls soccer beats Tennessee to reach AA semifinals: For the second time in program history, the Lady Hornets advanced to the Class AA semifinals with a 1-0 win over Tennessee High.

With 16:46 remaining in the first half, Nadia Presson sent a cross into Sierra Healy for the 1-0 advantage. The Lady Hornets outshot Tennessee 28-9 with an even balance of shots in each half. South Gibson had 16 shots on goal forcing Tennessee to make 15 saves.

4. Gibson County girls basketball beat York Institute in the 2A semifinals: To reach the Class 2A championship, the Lady Pioneers had to beat York Institute and Miss Basketball finalist Reese Beaty in the state semifinals. Gibson County won 38-35, using a 12-5 advantage in the third quarter to pull out the win. Sania Reaves scored 11 points to lead the Lady Pioneers, while Micah Hart added 10 points.

5. Milan boys basketball advances to sectionals with a win over Riverside: The Bulldogs advanced to the Class 2A sectionals for the second time in three years with a 47-44 overtime victory over Riverside in the Region 7-2A semifinals. In overtime, Carson Pruitt and Carmelo Jones hit baskets and a free throw each to help Milan secure the win. Jones finished with 20 points, while Pruitt added 13 points. Riverside led 39-29 after three quarters.

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6. South Gibson girls basketball beats Crockett County in Region 7-3A semifinals: The Lady Cavaliers had won two straight over the Lady Hornets with the second coming in the District 13-3A semifinals. But in the region semifinals, South Gibson pulled out a 33-31 victory. Hallie Allen and Karson Dunn finished with 11 points each, while Natalie Lewis added five points.

7. South Gibson football beats Dyer County in Week 7: With three seconds on the clock, South Gibson quarterback Cade Allen hit Cameron Clark with a 20-yard touchdown pass to beat the Choctaws 33-31 on Homecoming. Dyer County scored with 1:12 to play on a three-yard touchdown run for the 31-27 lead. But Allen hit Clark for a five-yard pass, Jonathan Reed for a 14-yard pass, Reed for a 10-yard pass and Jackson Bryant for a 20-yard pass to move the ball to the 20-yard line with three seconds on the clock.

Milan’s Braidan Gonzales slides safely home for the game-winning run against White-House Heritage during the Class 2A state tournament at Riverdale.

8. Milan baseball knocks off White House-Heritage to advance to 2A semifinals: White House-Heritage took a 5-3 lead heading into the seventh inning, but Braidan Gonzales tied the game with an RBI double, and Lincoln Reel sent him home for the winning run with a sacrifice fly. With bases loaded in the bottom of the seventh, Barton James struck out a White House-Heritage batter to end the game.

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9. Peabody football beats Loretto in the Class 2A first round: Going into the postseason, Loretto was undefeated with one of the best seasons in program history. Peabody was 4-6. But the Golden Tide put together one of its best games of the season to win 28-24. Jayden Jennings carried the ball 23 times for 77 yards and had two receptions for 87 yards. In the final two minutes of the third quarter, Ja’Quan Kinney ran a kickoff back 76 yards, and the Golden Tide defense fended off the last three Loretto possessions.

10. South Gibson baseball opens 3A state tournament with a win over Station Camp: While Station Camp averaged close to five runs per game in the Class 3A state tournament, the Bison only scored one in the opener as South Gibson beat them 5-1 in the opening round. Cade Allen allowed one run on three hits to go with 10 strikeouts and one walk in the win. Tommy Baker hit a grand slam to spark the Hornets’ offense.

11. South Gibson football beats Chester County in four overtimes in Week 6: It was an interception by Nathan Wallace on fourth down that sent the Hornets to a 35-28 victory over Chester County for the first Region 6-4A win on the season. South Gibson’s defense held Chester County to 128 yards of offense in regulation. The Hornets stopped the running game that finished with 63 yards on 26 carries, and the passing game wasn’t much better, completing 11-of-22 passes for 86 yards.

12. Gibson County softball beat Ripley to advance to District 14-2A title game: The Lady Pioneers scored two runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to take a 6-5 lead on the way to reaching the Region 7-2A semifinals. Andrea Criswell tied the game on an RBI double, and Chloe Allmon hit a sacrifice fly for the winning run.

13. South Gibson softball beats Dyer County to win District 13-3A crown: South Gibson scored eight runs in the first inning as the Lady Hornets beat Dyer County 11-6 to win the District 13-3A championship. Hailey Stines improved to 19-5 as she allowed four earned runs on six hits with three strikeouts and five walks. Hallie Allen went 3-for-4 with two doubles, one RBI and two runs. Sydney Scott went 2-for-5 with an RBI, Brooklyn Davidson went 2-for-4 with a run, Annie Whittemore went 2-for-4 with two runs and Stines went 2-for-4 with two RBI.

14. Milan volleyball wins Region 7-A championship over Gibson County: For the first time in program history, the Lady Bulldogs won a region title. They beat Gibson County in a grueling five-set match 16-25, 25-15, 25-23, 26-28, 22-20. In the fifth set, Gibson County had match point on three straight service points with the 14-12 lead. But a Mia Pearson kill and service points by Pearson tied up the match 14-14. Milan had match point at 17-16 on a Shea Thomas ace, but a Gibson County block tied the match. Tied 20-20, a Pearson kill gave Milan the 21-20 lead and the serve, and Pearson served the final point for the win.

15. South Gibson girls soccer takes Station Camp the distance in the Class AA semifinals: In 2022, Station Camp was the Class AAA runner-up, but the Lady Hornets weren’t scared. South Gibson kept the Lady Bison scoreless for 72 minutes before Station camp scored three goals late for the 3-0 win. Station Camp scored nine goals in the championship match.