By BAKER ELLIS / Sports Editor

MOUNTAIN BROOK – For the second consecutive year the Lady Warriors of Thompson have won the Spartan Thanksgiving Classic, hosted by Mountain Brook. Thompson beat Gardendale in the first round of the tournament before beating Central Tuscaloosa in the semis for a chance at the title, where the Lady Warriors faced the host team Mountain Brook, and won in overtime to stay perfect on the season and advance to 6-0.

Thompson cruised past Gardendale in the first round of the tournament by a final of 70-54. The Lady Warriors had four in double figures in the opening game and were led by Jordan LeNoir, who finished with a double-double at 22 points and 11 rebounds. Lauren Black hit six threes in the game and finished with 18 points, Indiah Cohill finished wit 13 points and six assists while Kahyanne Bolton finished with 11 in the win.

The going got significantly tougher for Thompson after the first round of the tournament, as both Central and Mountain Brook pushed the Lady Warriors to the brink. Central was handed its first loss of the young season in the semis thanks to a pair of double-doubles from LeNoir and Brittany Grice, who finished with 16 points and 12 rebounds and 10 points and 10 boards, respectively, as Thompson advanced to the finals via a 49-45 final.

The championship game pitted the last two Spartan Classic champions against each other, as Mountain Brook won the tournament two years ago before Thompson claimed the title last year. The Lady Spartans jumped on Thompson early, and held a 30-22 advantage heading into the break. After three quarters, Mountain Brook still led 38-31, before the Thompson defense clamped down on the Lady Spartans. Thompson allowed just four fourth-quarter points as the Lady Warriors tied the game at 42 apiece to force an extra period, which Thompson 11-5, winning the game, and subsequently the championship, by a final of 53-47.

LeNoir had 15 points in the championship game and was named the Tournament MVP. Bolton finished with 12 points while Grice finished with eight points and a whopping 18 rebounds. Cohill and Azariah Jackson all were named to the All-Tournament team as Thompson moved to 6-0.