Former Gleason and Vanderbilt standout Ashley McElhiney
returned to a hero's welcome on Saturday night as the
Nashville Rhythm squared off with the St. Louis Flight in
the first professional sports event in Gleason's history.
However, the Flight made sure that the first female head
coach of a male pro sports team would not have a completely
happy homecoming as the St. Louis team defeated Nashville
130-114 in a fast-paced matchup.
"I was excited to see all of the orange again," McElhiney
said. "The support here means a lot for us as a team."
McElhiney graduated in 1999 after leading the Lady Bulldogs
to the school's second TSSAA state title.
"The reaction tonight brought back the feelings of playing
in Gleason again," McElhiney said.
The Flight took off early, jumping out to a 14-5 lead early
in the opening frame with a balanced, fast-paced scoring
attack built on five points from Cedric Moodie and a
four-point shot and a free throw from Tyrone Lee. After a
pair of free throws from the Rhythm's Marcus Williams, the
Flight continued to build its lead with an 8-0 run capped by
a deuce from Tim Pledger to make the score 22-7 with 7:16
left in the first frame. Though the Rhythm were finally able
to get some offense going, the Flight were able to match
every tally to keep a 15-point lead through much of the
first frame. After a three-pointer from Josh Cooperwood cut
the St. Louis lead to 13 points, the Flight ended the first
frame with a strong run a jumper from Justice Sueing led to
buckets from Moodie and Antione Johnson to give the visitors
a 39-21 lead after one frame.
The Flight continued to add to its lead in the second frame
as a three-pointer from Moodie pushed the St. Louis lead to
46-23 with 10:17 left in the first half. The Rhythm were
able to cut into the lead as they played stronger through
the heart of the second frame. The balanced team effort from
the Rhythm allowed Nashville to outscore its opponent 17-5
over a six minute span through the frame and cut the lead to
51-40 with 4:11 left in the first half. But, the Flight was
able to ground the Nashville scoring machine, countering
three treys from Kyle Gribble with 11 points of its own to
take a 62-49 lead into the lockerroom at halftime.
The Flight began to jet away with the lead early in the
second half. While the St. Louis defense allowed only eight
points through the first half of the third quarter, the
Flight offensive took off, scoring 26 points in the first
seven minutes of the second half, a run that was capped by
two jumpers from Jamal Gooding to give the Flight an 88-57
lead with 4:50 left in the frame. But, the Rhythm were able
to end the frame stronger, as a five-point play by Ali McGee
cut the lead to 100-75 at the end of the third frame.
After giving up a free throw to start the final frame, the
Rhythm got a three-point play from Cooperwood. Nashville
then stole the ensuing inbounds pass, resulting in a
three-point dunk from Marcus Williams to cut the lead to
101-81 with just over 10 minutes left in the game. But, the
Flight got back on course, keeping Nashville at bay by
answered each Nashville tally with another one of its own. A
late run by the Rhythm cut the lead to 15 points before a
late free throw made the score 130-114 at the end of the
game.
Cooperwood led Nashville with 30 points, while Williams
added 24 and Garrett Richardson scored 13 points.
McElhiney was proud of Williams' effort, who is returning
from an injury.
"Williams played hard on both ends of the court," McElhiney
said. "I saw some rust, but I don't want to use that as an
excuse."
McGee and Ryan Boles each scored 10 in the loss. Brian
Edwards led the way for St. Louis with 30 points while
Moodie added 25 and Sueing scored 23. Lee scored 14 and
Johnson added 10 in the win.
With the recent losses of player personnel, McElhiney
maintained that was not the reason for the loss on Saturday
night.
"The team just didn't show up to play," McElhiney said.
"With the playoffs in sight, you have to come out to play
every night."
The loss drops the Rhythm's record to 17-8 on the season.
