March 3, 2019
By: Dwayne Page
The DCHS Lady Tigers, coaches, and cheerleaders returned home to a hero’s welcome late Saturday night as happy fans gathered at the high school gym to celebrate their team’s sub-state victory over McMinn Central 44 to 42 on the road at Englewood.
The team is part of the elite eight in the Class AA State Tournament and will play on Wednesday at MTSU in Murfreesboro at 1:15 p.m. against 26-7 Marshall County. It’s the first state tournament appearance by a DCHS girls team since 1965.
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The Lady Tiger’s charter bus arrived at the high school around 11 p.m. Saturday and was escorted through town by Sheriff Patrick Ray, Smithville Police Chief Mark Collins, and the Smithville and DeKalb Fire Departments, along with Darrell Gill of Gill Automotive, an avid DCHS athletics supporter, who sounded his train horn along the way in celebration of the Lady Tigers’ win.
After stepping off the bus, the team assembled inside the gym to celebrate with family and fans and Coach Danny Fish made some brief remarks, thanking them for their support.
“I can’t tell you how proud I am of this group. We have a lot of special individuals in this group. Teams are made up of a lot of good players but it’s those individuals that can sacrifice themselves that makes the best teams. I love athletics because it teaches so many life lessons. Not everything is always going to go your way in life. The ball is not going to go in the hole all the time. You’re going to make mistakes but it’s not that which defines you it’s the moments after that which do,” said Coach Fish.
“There are many faces here who have contributed to what we have here tonight and in these girl’s lives to make them a better person and basketball player. I thank you for that because it definitely makes my job easier. I thank you parents for your support. This is a great moment. We would like for you (fans) to come out and support us on Wednesday. We will know what time and who we play (Sunday) but whoever we play Cinderella (Lady Tigers) still has the shoe on,” added Coach Fish.