By ALEX DRISKELL / For the Reporter

COLUMBIANA- On Jan. 30, the heated rivalry between Shelby County and Chelsea added an exciting new chapter. This was the second time the Wildcats and the Hornets met this season with Shelby County toppling Chelsea on both occasions. The Wildcats got much more than bargained for this time, walking away with an 82-79 victory.

The first quarter was neck and neck as both played very efficiently on the offensive side of the ball. With great balance down low and on the perimeter the Wildcats took a 21-20 lead into the second.

Shelby County started off with a 16-6 run to begin the second to pull away 37-26 early. The Wildcats would still have great offensive balance as well as tough defense to take a 47-32 lead into the half.

Sloppy play from Shelby County in the third aided the Hornets to cut the lead to 52-46, but within the midst of Chelsea’s celebration, a technical foul was given to the Hornet bench. That mistake would prove costly as Shelby County would pull away 56-46. The Wildcats then looked unstoppable on offense as they took a 70-55 lead into an exciting fourth quarter.

Both teams really couldn’t get anything going offensively early in the fourth. Chelsea was the first of the two teams to wake up as they cut the lead to 75-66 with minutes to play in the contest. Late into the fourth Chelsea was able to come within three points with six seconds left, but Shelby County foiled a last second three-point attempt at the buzzer to walk away with 82-79 victory.