On a cold Friday night in Lewisburg, the recently crowned District 12-AA champion Nolensville Lady Knights visited Dottie Kelso Memorial Gymnasium in the regular season finale.

Despite the cold outside, the Tigerettes and Lady Knights heated up the gym in a defensive struggle that saw MCHS fall just short as Nolensville used a strong fourth quarter to eke out a 38-31 victory.

“I could see yesterday (Thursday) that we were ready to give them all we had,” Marshall County coach David Steely said. “I love the way we competed. We came to compete.”

The Tigerettes (5-14, 3-7) travel to Forrest (8-12, 5-5) for an intra-county rivalry contest when the District 12-AA Tournament gets started after the deep freeze.

The winner goes on the road to Community (11-10, 6-4) for the semifinals and the Lady Knights (15-6, 8-2) await the winner of the Giles County (6-11, 4-6) at Murfreesboro Central Magnet School (10-8, 4-6) matchup.

Dionna Crutcher led the Tigerettes in the scoring column with 20 points, Karlye Wiser netted seven, and Sydney Tidwell and Israel Hurt added two points apiece.

Senior Tigerettes Crutcher, Wiser, and Tidwell will be entering tournament play for the last time.

The three seniors have had great success in blue and white, compiling a 73-41 overall record, 23-8 in district play, two district tournament title games, three region title games with one championship, three straight sectional contests, and one state tournament appearance in 2018-2019.

The Lady Knights, who have won the regular season district crown three straight seasons, controlled the tip and Jenna Ruth Moyer drained a 3-pointer before Crutcher returned the favor when she nailed a long bomb from the top of the three-point arc.

The Lady Knights then went on a seven-point run as Caymin Ladd had five points and Zoe Piller added a basket to put Nolensville’s lead at seven points, 10-3.

Crutcher swished home another 3-pointer to cut the lead to four points at 10-6 at the end of the first quarter.

The second period began with Crutcher showcasing her talent as she dropped in two 3-pointers and a basket, along with a short jumper by Tidwell that propelled the Tigerettes to a 16-15 halftime lead.

The first half defense by the Tigerettes was superb as they forced the district’s top team into errors and pressured shots, especially the double team on Piller, a mountain of a player that Hurt and Demiyah Blackwell contained for just 12 points.

The third quarter began with the Tigerettes shooting free-throws as a result of a technical foul called Piller.

The Tigerettes could not take advantage, but Crutcher continued her assault on the Lady Knights as she drove around, though, and over to score seven points in the quarter.

However, Piller began to work down low, dropping in five points, Ladd added a 3-pointer, and Sarah Brewer scored four points as the Lady Knights forged into the lead at 27-25 at the end of three quarters.

The Lady Knights, in what would prove to be the difference in the game, went on a five-point run at the 3:36 mark of the fourth quarter that increased their lead to 32-27.

With time running down, the Tigerettes were forced to foul as the Lady Knights continued to work with Piller and Brewer inside.

Wiser contributed two baskets, but the Tigerettes could not pull the upset as the Lady Knights eked out a 38-31 victory.

“It was a really good game and we played a four-quarter game against the district’s best team,” Steely said. “We just had a few too many turnovers and missed chances.”

“Hopefully, this will carry over into Monday’s night game against Forrest. Monday’s game is an elimination game, so one team’s season will be over. We are going to give it our best shot.”

Nolensville 10 5 12 11-38

Marshall County 6 10 9 6-31

Nolensville (37): Zoe Piller 12, Caymin Ladd 11, Sarah Brewer 7, Chloe Earls 3, Jenna Ruth Moyer 3, Sarah Grubesic 2.

Three-Point Goals (4): Ladd 2, Earls, Moyer.

Free Throws (6-for-16): Brewer 3-for-4, Piller 2-for-8, Ladd 1-for-4.

MCHS (31): Dionna Crutcher 20, Wiser 7 Hurt 2, Tidwell 2.

Three-Point Goals (4): Crutcher 3, Wiser.

Free Throws (3-for-7): Crutcher 3-for-5, Wiser 0-for-2.

Halftime Score: MCHS 16, Nolensville 15.