Macon — Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy made its run, but the Warriors couldn't get over the hump.

Behind by as many as 11 in the second half, the Warriors charged back in the fourth quarter to tie, but Terrell County hit its free throws in the final minute to win 56-49 in the Class A girls semifinals Wednesday at the Macon Centreplex.

JOHNNY CRAWFORD/AJC (ENLARGE)

Southwest Atlanta Christian's Sydney Gathright (23) looses the ball to Terrell County's Shaylia Jester (52) in the Class A Girls opening game in the Macon Coliseum in Macon, Georgia on Wednesday.

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SACA used a 10-0 run spanning the third and fourth quarters to erase a 41-31 deficit in the final minutes after the Greenwaves looked in control.

Mariah Eades hit two of her four 3-pointers during that stretch to help the Warriors (24-7) get close.

"She shot the ball well," SACA coach Jackie Ransom said. "It wasn't so much that we made a run; it was that we started doing what we were supposed to be doing."

For the Greenwaves (29-1), halting SACA's momentum was all about buckling down.

"I think we kind of lost focus," Terrell County coach Tammye Jenkins said. "In situations like this, you have to stay focused the entire game. [During a late timeout], I didn't talk about strategy or anything like that. That's all I talked about — focus."

That had been a problem for the Greenwaves much of the game. They were 2 for 10 from the free-throw line until the final minute of the game.

During that last minute, Terrell County was 7 of 8 on free throws, including three consecutive front ends of one-and-ones.

The sudden burst of near-perfect shooting proved to be too much for SACA to overcome and just what the Greenwaves needed.

"Free throws can win or lose a game; that's something we've focused on all year," Jenkins said. "We struggled some, but ... we hit them when we needed them."

Monshay Thomas had with 19 points and 12 rebounds for Terrell County. Eades led the Warriors with 14.