The Belgreen Bulldogs fell in a close one to the Phillips Bears in the Class 1A Area 12 championship Saturday 51-47.

The Bears were able to hold off a late rally by the Bulldogs to claim the area title.  Belgreen (20-9) traveled to Mars Hill Monday night for the subregional game.

Belgreen trailed Phillips 9-4 at the end of the first quarter, and the Bears extended their lead to 26-15 at halftime. Belgreen came storming back in the third quarter, cutting Phillips’ lead to two points, 30-28. Belgreen stayed right with the Bears throughout the fourth quarter, but Phillips outscored the Bulldogs 21-19 to hold off the rally.

Offensively, Belgreen went mainly with the team’s two post options, Ansley Tate and Emma Dempsey. Tate led with 18 points, while Dempsey followed with 11 points.  Autumn Bragwell and Katie Dempsey scored six points each. Gracie Dempsey added five points, and Noelle Willingham chipped in one point.

Semifinals: Belgreen 63, Vina 50

Emma Dempsey and Tate dominated the Vina Red Devils in the paint in the Class 1A Area 12 semifinal game. Dempsey scored 26 points while Tate added 18 points to help Belgreen advance to the finals, beating Vina 63-50.

Belgreen raced out to a 19-9 first quarter lead behind 10 points from Tate. The Bulldogs extended their lead to 30-18 at halftime. Tate scored eight more points in the third quarter to help Belgreen outscore Vina 18-14 and take a 48-32 lead into the fourth quarter.

Gracie Dempsey added 11 points for Belgreen. Katie Dempsey scored six points and Autumn Bragwell three points.

Sophomore point guard Rayleigh Guin led all scorers with 26 points for Vina. Kaitlyn Athey added nine points, Sara Scott six points, Sarah Johnson four points, Sara Harper three points and Kaitlyn King two points.