SPORTS

The Tennessean Midstate girls basketball top 10

Michael Murphy
USA TODAY NETWORK – Tennessee

A look at the top girls basketball teams in Middle Tennessee, as ranked by The Tennessean:

Oakland's Shelby Gibson (42) and the fifth-ranked Lady Patriots are off to a 12-1 start.

10. FRA (11-1) — The Lady Panthers, champions at last week’s FRA Christmas Classic, have strung together eight straight wins since suffering a Dec. 1 defeat to unbeaten Father Ryan. Last week: NR. 

9. Rossview (12-2) — Senior Mickey Head (10.5 points per game) is the only Lady Hawks player averaging in double figures, but junior Karle Pace (9.6) and senior Haylee Croom (9.5) have also been solid scoring options. Last week: No. 8.

8. Stewarts Creek (14-1) — The Lady Red Hawks haven’t played the most challenging early-season schedule, but they’ve continued to pile up the victories prior to the start of a grueling District 7-AAA stretch on Jan. 5. Last week: No. 7.

7. Dickson County (12-2) — The Lea Lea Carter-led Lady Cougars suffered their second loss of the season in lopsided fashion at last week’s Above the Rim tournament, falling to Brentwood Academy 60-43 in Wednesday’s championship. Last week: No. 6. 

6. Father Ryan (13-0) — The Lady Irish limited each of their three opponents to less than 33 points at last week’s St. Pius X Christmas Classic in Atlanta, culminating with a 28-25 championship triumph over St. Joseph’s Academy (Mo.). Last week: No. 9. 

5. Oakland (12-1) — Ole Miss signee Shelby Gibson and the Lady Patriots will face a pair of difficult challenges this week as they play host to District 7-AAA foes Riverdale and Blackman, which have tallied a combined 25-3 record. Last week: No. 5.

4. Wilson Central (14-0) — Guard Kendall Spray has already knocked down 89 3-pointers this season for the unbeaten Lady Wildcats, and the senior UT Martin signee is averaging over 25 points per game. Last week: No. 4.

3. Brentwood Academy (11-3) — The Lady Eagles stole the show at last week’s Above the Rim tournament at Hickman County, reeling off lopsided wins over BGA (82-47), CPA (63-41) and Dickson County (60-43). Last week: No. 3.

2. Riverdale (14-1) — The host Lady Warriors posted a pair of wins at last week’s Riverdale State Farm Classic, routing Lee (Ala.) 90-41 before capturing a 75-69 win over an 11-win Houston squad. Last week: No. 2. 

1. Blackman (12-2) —The Lady Blaze fell to an out-of-state opponent for the second time this season, suffering a 64-43 defeat to host Duncanville in the championship of last week’s Sandra Meadow Classic in Duncanville, Texas. Last week: No. 1. 

Reach Michael Murphy at 615-259-8262 and on Twitter @Murph_TNsports.