CENTRE - Piedmont girls basketball coach Matt Deerman knows eventually his Lady Bulldogs are going to run up against a team that will have an answer for the inside presences of seniors BreAnna Thompson and Sarah Garner.

But two games into the 2012-13 season, neither Gaston nor Section could find a way to stop them.

Piedmont claimed its second victory in as many nights in the Cherokee Medical Center Thanksgiving Tournament on Wednesday. This time, Thompson led the charge with a game-high 31 points and six rebounds. Garner tallied 21 points and 10 boards to lead Piedmont to a 59-41 win over Section.

"That's what we expect from them. We expect them to be our scorers night in and night out," Deerman said.

"Once again, the matchup problem was BreAnna's quickness on the post and her strength down there. When somebody figures out how to stop that, we're going to be in trouble, and that's what I told them in the locker room. We've got to have some people step up and get some points. They're doing their role right now giving them the ball, but we're going to have to have somebody else step up eventually and hit some outside shots."

Piedmont (2-0) advances to face Hokes Bluff in the tournament championship on Friday at 7:45 p.m. Hokes Bluff defeated Pinson Valley 24-21 in other tournament action on Wednesday.

Hokes Bluff ended Piedmont's season last year.

"It's not a revenge thing, because (Hokes Bluff coach) Jason (Shields) and I are good friends, and he does an excellent job," Deerman said. "It's just one of those things that leaves a bad taste in your mouth. You want to come back and show that you've made progress since last year."

Piedmont jumped out to a 21-7 lead at the end of the first quarter and held a 33-16 advantage at halftime.

Section (1-3) scored the first seven points of the third quarter to pull to within 11 at 34-23. The Lady Lions cut things to 10 points at 35-25 on a bucket by Kaylea McAllister with 6:05 left in the third, but Thompson and Garner made sure they would creep no closer.

The duo helped Piedmont built its lead back up to 19 at 50-31 heading into the final quarter.

Thompson connected on 11 of 14 shots from the floor, while Garner made 10 of her 17 shots from the court.

Hannah Presley led the Lady Lions with 22 points. Deerman called Presley "very deceiving" to defend.

"She's a bigger girl and has some very good post moves. She's strong and uses her body well," he said. "I told them she was going to get us into foul trouble if we tried to block her shots. She's going to get her points. We were trying not to let her touch the ball, but we got tired."

McAllister added nine points and Lena Cordell finished with five points.

Bre Green contributed five points for Piedmont.

"I think we're way ahead of where we were at this point last year," Deerman said. "We've been talking about taking things step by step, and now that we're here (in the tournament championship), we want to finish it.

"One of our players (senior guard Caitlyn Coogler), her uncle died last year and she's made this tournament something special. We really want to win it for her."

The following is a recap of Wednesday's tournament action.

Hokes Bluff 24, Pinson Valley 21

CENTRE - Carlie Shields sank two free throws with just over 18 seconds remaining, and the Hokes Bluff Lady Eagles held on for a 24-21 victory over Pinson Valley in the Cherokee Medical Center Thanksgiving Tournament championship semifinals on Wednesday.

Pinson Valley had a chance to tie the game, but Alex Lowery's 3-pointer at the buzzer missed the mark.

Shields led all scorers with 11 points. Keisha Chapman added five points for the Lady Eagles.

Nia Gray led Pinson Valley with eight points. Lowery contributed seven points and Maralie McKinney finished with five points.

Hokes Bluff led 6-4 at the end of the first quarter and 13-10 at halftime. The Lady Eagles held an 18-14 advantage at the end of the third quarter.

Hokes Bluff meets Piedmont in the tournament championship on Friday at 7:45 p.m. Pinson Valley faces Section at 6 p.m.

Alexandria 53, Gaston 40

CENTRE - Carly Edwards netted 19 points and Timberlyn Shurbutt added 11 to lead the Alexandria Lady Cubs to a 53-40 victory over Gaston in the Cherokee Medical Center Thanksgiving Tournament on Wednesday.

Amanda Young contributed 10 points for Alexandria. Mendi Lash had seven points and Jordan Andrews finished with five points.

Abby Elrod led Gaston with 19 points. Kierra Porter added eight points. Destiny Allen and Haley Solomon both had four points for the Lady Bulldogs, who led 8-6 at the end of the first quarter.

Alexandria took a 22-19 lead into halftime and stretched its advantage to 41-31 after three quarters.

Alexandria takes on Etowah in the tournament consolation bracket on Friday at 2:30 p.m. Gaston will play Saks at 4:15 p.m.

Etowah 49, Saks 21

CENTRE - Maelin Trammell scored a game-high 19 points and teammate Haley Hyde added 14 as the Etowah Lady Blue Devils claimed a 49-21 victory over Saks in the Cherokee Medical Center Thanksgiving Tournament on Wednesday.

Amber Jones contributed seven points for the Lady Blue Devils. Brooke Perry finished with six points.

Jordan Briskey led Saks with nine points. Taylor West added five points for the Lady Wildcats.

Etowah jumped out to an 18-9 advantage in the first quarter and extended its lead to 33-12 at halftime. The Lady Blue Devils led 47-15 at the end of the third quarter.

Etowah faces Alexandria in the tournament consolation bracket on Friday at 2:30 p.m. Saks plays Gaston at 4:15 p.m.