Claiborne High School hosted the District 2-A Tournament, beginning Friday, Feb. 15, and ending with Championship Games the following Monday and Tuesday.

Action began Friday with Gatlinburg-Pittman girls tripping up the Lady Pioneers of Rutledge. Rutledge was eliminated by a score of 51-34.

Game two of first round action pitted the Claiborne High Lady Bulldogs against neighboring Union County Lady Patriots. Ariel Nickell contributed 22 points to the final score of 49-44, eliminating the Lady Pats.

The Claiborne High Bulldogs were next in competition against the Rutledge High Pioneers. After four quarters of intense play, Rutledge moved on to round two with a score of 65-54.

The final contest for this round had the Cumberland Gap High School Panthers facing the Pigeon Forge High School Tigers. The Tigers pulled away to win with a final score of 61-41, advancing the Tigers to day two of the tournament.

Round two of the District Tournament began with the Claiborne High Lady Bulldogs facing in-county rivals the Cumberland Gap Lady Panthers. This was a close game with the Lady Bulldogs pulling out a 43-40 victory over the Lady Panthers. This game placed the Bulldogs in the running for District 2-A champions.

Game two on Saturday involved another huge rival-Pigeon Forge Lady Tigers versus Gatlinburg-Pittman Lady Highlanders. GPHS took the game and advanced to the championship with a score of 44-39.

Game three, Gatlinburg-Pittman Highlanders vs. Pigeon Forge Tigers, landed the boys' team of Pigeon Forge in the championship game. The Tigers were the winners of this contest with a final of 52-42.

In the last game of round two, the Union County Patriots faced the Rutledge Pioneers. Union County gave Rutledge a run for their money, but Rutledge had more points in the end. The final score for this game was 73-65, advancing Rutledge to the championship.

Monday night was the championship night for the girls' teams. The night began with play for third and fourth place teams. The Pigeon Forge Lady Tigers took on the Cumberland Gap Lady Panthers in a close game. The contest landed Chelsea Webb and Danielle Rauhuff both of Pigeon Forge in double figures, each scoring 11 points. Kelsey Dean of Cumberland Gap also had a double-figure addition to the score. She scored 13 points for her team in their vie for third place. The Lady Tigers won the contest, however, with a final score of 37-35.

The Gatlinburg Pittman Lady Highlanders and the Claiborne High Lady Bulldogs faced each other in the Championship game, each wanting the first place plaque for their schools. Both teams played with heart and determination, but the Lady Highlanders came out victorious in the end. Final score was 67-55. Gatlinburg-Pittman had three players scoring in double figures: Caroline Conner, 15; Whitney Stinnett, 22; and Jessica Ellison, 22. Claiborne also had three girls scoring in double figures: Katilyn Rowe, 12; Lindsey Snodgrass, 13; and Ariel Nickell, 11.

Tuesday night's boys' tournament action began with a barnburner of a game! Union County and Gatlinburg-Pittman went head-to-head in a total four-quarter contest. Tyler Vittetoe led the scoring for Union County with 22 points, while GPHS leading scorer was McKinley Maples with 18 points. Third place went to Union County - final score 78-74.

The final game of the tournament featured Pigeon Forge High School and Rutledge High School. Although Pigeon Forge was competing for its first championship victory, Rutledge dominated the contest knocking down eight 3-point shots in a final 68-48 score. Skylar McBee of Rutledge led all scorers with 26 points.

The 1st through 4th place winners advanced to regional play. Claiborne High School will host the regional game between the Claiborne High Lady Bulldogs and the Elizabethton Lady Fighting Cyclones on Friday, February 22nd.