BY KYLE LOVERN
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN
GLENVILLE, W.Va. — The Tug Valley Lady Panthers pulled off a huge upset by defeating No. 1-ranked Gilmer County 42-39 in a road game Saturday night in Glenville.
Tug Valley went into the game ranked No. 3 in Class A. Gilmer County is the defending Single A state champ, beating the Lady Panthers in the finals in March 2025.
This was the second meeting of the two Class A powerhouses this season as the Lady Titans downed Tug Valley 51-38 in the last battle at Naugatuck.
Kylie DeBoard hit a couple of clutch foul shots to give Tug Valley a 3-point lead in the final seconds. Gilmer County got a shot at the buzzer to tie the game, but the shot clanked off the rim and the Lady Panthers were able to celebrate the big victory.
DeBoard scored eight points to lead Tug Valley in the fourth quarter, while making 6-of-6 at the free-throw line in the final minutes.
The game was close the entire night, but Tug Valley outscored Gilmer County 16-12 in the final period.
“I am really proud of this team and their ability to fight in the darkest moments when everything is against them,” Tug Valley coach Seth Ooten said. “Gilmer is a very hard place to play with girls who play hard and are well coached by Coach Chapman. It was an electric environment, and it’s always good when you can walk away with a win.”
While the atmosphere and the challenge of playing on the road stood out, Ooten said the game ultimately turned on defense and timely execution in the closing minutes.
“I thought defensively we played one of our best games,” he said. “Katie and Bailee Hall did an unbelievable job guarding the post. They limited the ability of their bigs getting rebounds and making easy shots. I thought our guard defensive play did a tremendous job causing turnovers and limiting their ability to feed the post.”
Ooten noted that timely scoring was just as important down the stretch.
“Kylie’s clutch shots and free throws (9 for 10) helped push us into the lead late,” he added. “Katelynn had a couple of putbacks and Haven also hit a jump shot late in the fourth that helped us secure the win.”
The coach also credited the team’s depth for helping maintain momentum.
“Gracie, Brooke (Spaulding) and Alexis (Messer) also came off the bench and gave us some valuable minutes that helped close the gap at different points in the game,” said Ooten.
DeBoard led the Lady Panthers with 15 points. Haven Deskins followed with eight points, Bailee Hall and Katelynn Richardson both scored six points and Katie Hall chipped in three points. Gracie Hynd and Brooke Spaulding contributed two points off the bench to round out the scoring.
Bailee Hall and Katie Hall each pulled down seven rebounds, while DeBoard dished out four assists.
Gilmer County features a pair of 6-foot-4 sisters, Ava Dobbins and Blair Dobbins. Ava Dobbins led the Lady Titans in scoring with 13 points, Paige Sterns scored nine, Lena Frymier added eight, Laura Brannen contributed five and Blair Dobbins flipped in four points.
Tug Valley is set to play on the road at Man Jan. 26 and then at Lawrence County on Jan. 28.
The Lady Panthers improve to 10-3 on the season, while Gilmer County is now 7-1 after its first loss of the season.
Score by quarters:
Tug: 8 9 9 16 – 42
Gilmer: 10 8 9 12 – 39