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By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor

NORTHPORT – The Thompson Warriors got back on track in area play with a road victory at Tuscaloosa County High School to keep pace in the Class 7A, Area 5 standings.

Thompson defeated Tuscaloosa County 46-37 on the road on Tuesday, Jan. 14 to its first area game in three attempts.

The win was also crucial in snapping a four-game losing streak after the Warriors fell 45-37 to Shades Valley on Dec. 20, 51-44 to Hale County on Jan. 3, 72-21 to Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa on Jan. 7 and 76-53 to Prattville on Jan. 9.

Thompson got some early offense thanks to field goals from Destinee Ealy, Kayla Russell and Breanna Castille, but the visitors were just slightly outpaced by the Wildcats as the hosts led 9-7 at the end of one quarter of play.

However, the Warriors wrestled control of the game in the second quarter.

The offense erupted thanks to two more 3-pointers from Ealy, Sydney Coney’s first six points of the evening and five points from Russell. Nadya French added a trio of free throws to lift Thompson to 20 points in the second.

As for the Warriors defense, it locked in as well, surrendering just five more points before halftime to take a 27-14 lead into the halftime break.

Thompson’s scoring pace dramatically slowed down in the third quarter, but the damage was done, as not even a pair of 3-pointers and 12 points overall for Tuscaloosa County could overcome the great deficit.

The Warriors continued to lead 33-26, but with it being just a two-possession game, their lead was by no means safe.

Ealy took over for the Thompson offense late, scoring seven points in the fourth off a pair of field goals and a pair of free throws. As a whole, the Warriors continued to hit shots down the stretch to keep the Wildcats at an arm’s length and secure the nine-point victory.

Ealy led Thompson with 16 points. Russell and Conery each scored nine points, French earned six points and Heidi Childs finished with five points.

The Warriors are now 9-8 on the season and 1-2 in area play. They will look to topple the undefeated Hillcrest Patriots in their next area game on Friday, Jan. 17 at 6 p.m. ahead of a Martin Luther King, Jr. Day trip to the Prattville Lions on Monday, Jan. 20 at 5:30 p.m.