One reigning champion and three first-time winners were among the eight teams that won girls basketball state titles in Macon last week and finished No. 1 in the final rankings of the 2020-2021 season.
Westlake became the seventh girls program in GHSA history to win four consecutive state titles when the Lions defeated Carrollton 64-46 in the Class 6A championship game Friday night at the Macon Coliseum. Westlake won Class 7A titles the previous three years before moving down in reclassification.
Raven Johnson and Brianna Turnage, the only girls that played on all four championship teams, combined for 21 points, 15 rebounds and six assists. Ta’Niya Latson led the Lions with 24 points. The Lions (20-0) were the only girls team in any classification to finish unbeaten.
Cross Creek, Hebron Christian and Calhoun County won their first state championships. Hebron Christian (29-2) defeated St. Francis 51-46 in overtime Wednesday to claim the Class A Private title. Hebron Christian’s coach, Jan Azar, previously won 13 state championships at fellow Gwinnett County private school Wesleyan.
Cross Creek (23-2) defeated defending state champion Greater Atlanta Christian 56-44 Friday to earn the Class 3A title. It was a banner day for the Augusta school’s basketball program, as the Razorbacks’ boys team beat Sandy Creek 57-49 to win its first title and complete the Class 3A sweep.
Calhoun County (14-1) played just 15 games this season, but it made the most of them, winning the Class A Public title with a 49-45 win over Clinch County on Saturday. Calhoun County committed 30 turnovers, but Clinch County was 18-of-84 (21.4 percent) from the field, 4-of-19 (21.1 percent) on 3-pointers and 5-of-16 (31.3 percent) on free throws.
The other four state champions had won previous state titles. Class 7A Marietta (21-5) broke the longest drought, winning its first championship since 1951. Class 2A Josey (20-6), the only unranked team to capture a championship this season, won its first state title since 1998. Class 5A Woodward Academy (22-1) won its first title since 1999, and Class 4A Carver-Columbus (16-2) won its second in three years.
Eleven teams that were unranked heading into the state tournament worked their way into the final top 10s. They were Brookwood in Class 7A, Dutchtown and Griffin in 5A, Cedar Shoals and Pickens in 4A, Pierce County in 3A, Josey and Callaway in 2A, Deerfield-Windsor in A Private, and Emanuel County Institute and Commerce in A Public.
Class 7A
1. Marietta (21-5)
2. McEachern (18-5)
3. Collins Hill (25-2)
4. Cherokee (24-4)
5. Woodstock (22-9)
6. Brookwood (16-8)
7. North Forsyth (23-5)
8. Campbell (14-4)
8. Norcross (20-8)
10. North Paulding (19-6)
Class 6A
1. Westlake (20-0)
2. Carrollton (30-2)
3. Lovejoy (20-6)
4. Buford (26-1)
5. Kell (25-4)
6. River Ridge (27-4)
7. Hughes (18-7)
8. Statesboro (22-1)
9. Sprayberry (21-6)
10. Rockdale County (19-4)
Class 5A
1. Woodward Academy (22-1)
2. Forest Park (23-6)
3. Southwest DeKalb (20-7)
4. Dutchtown (22-9)
5. Griffin (19-8)
6. New Manchester (24-4)
7. Cass (25-2)
8. Hiram (19-5)
9. Loganville (26-4)
10. St. Pius (19-3)
Class 4A
1. Carver-Columbus (16-2)
2. Jefferson (23-5)
3. Cairo (18-2)
4. Cedar Shoals (18-9)
5. Troup (15-6)
6. Luella (21-3)
7. Pickens (22-5)
8. Spalding (15-4)
9. Marist (21-4)
10. Arabia Mountain (15-3)
Class 3A
1. Cross Creek (23-2)
2. Greater Atlanta Christian (15-8)
3. Upson-Lee (23-1)
4. Lumpkin County (25-5)
5. Sonoraville (23-5)
6. Johnson-Savannah (12-3)
7. Stephens County (19-7)
8. Pierce County (19-7)
9. Westminster (17-3)
10. Americus-Sumter (15-5)
Class 2A
1. Josey (20-6)
2. Fannin County (23-5)
3. Butler (21-5)
4. Elbert County (23-3)
5. Washington County (17-2)
6. Early County (16-1)
7. Columbia (17-8)
8. East Laurens (16-3)
9. Rabun County (19-7)
10. Callaway (15-7)
Class A Private
1. Hebron Christian (29-2)
2. St. Francis (22-5)
3. Holy Innocents’ (12-7)
4. Galloway (19-7)
5. Mount Paran Christian (23-4)
6. Wesleyan (12-6)
7. Greenforest (14-6)
8. Eagle’s Landing Christian (16-7)
9. Deerfield-Windsor (18-9)
10. Trinity Christian (16-9)
Class A Public
1. Calhoun County (14-1)
2. Clinch County (22-2)
3. Lake Oconee Academy (25-1)
4. Greenville (15-1)
5. Emanuel County Institute (14-7)
6. Commerce (19-11)
7. Georgia Military (18-2)
8. Turner County (18-7)
9. Dublin (22-4)
10. Trion (19-5)
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