By Tabitha Evans Moore, EDITOR & PUBLISHER
LOCAL SPORTS | After losses against Eagleville and Fayetteville, the Raiders travelled to Huntland on Wednesday and earned a tough 55-52 road win.
The Raiders came into the Huntland game with a 0-2 District 9 record and a 4-11 overall record. They fell to Fayetteville on Friday, January 12 in Lynchburg by a final score of 47-33.
The Raiders gave the Tigers all they wanted in the first half of that game – going into the locker room tied 20-20, but Fayetteville put up 27 second half points will holding the Raiders to just 13 to outlast them down the stretch. Alex Copeland led for the Raiders with 16 points followed by Logan Hegwood with nine. Wes Clifton and Matthew White added three each and Peyton Martin added a basket.
Raiders lead by one at the half
The Raiders jumped out to a 14-5 lead in the first quarter thanks to points by Alex Copeland, Dawson White, Logan Hegwood, and Sawyer Parks. However, Huntland battled back in the second period. They put up 16 points while holding the Raiders to just eight to pull within one point at halftime. After the first two periods, the Raiders held on to a narrow one-point lead.
Dawson White led in the first half with eight points followed by Sawyer Parks with six. Both Alex Copeland and Logan Hegwood added four points each.
Raiders hold on down the stretch
Huntland continued to battle back in the third period. They came out of gate swinging – putting up 20 points while holding Moore County to just 14. At the end of three, Moore County trailed 41-36.
In the fourth, Huntland and Moore County traded turnovers on their first couple of possessions before White crashed the boards for a jumper to make it 41-38. He drew the “and one” foul, but could not connect. Huntland answered with their own right side jumper to stretch the lead back to five.
On the next possession, Peyton Martin fed the ball to White who connected for two more points. Huntland turned the ball over on the next play thanks to a heads up defensive move by Copeland who swatted the ball out of the Hornet point guards hand. He chased it and earned and over-and-back call. Moore County couldn’t convert the opportunity to points.
Huntland made an off-the-backboard jumper on the next possession to make it, 45-40. Copeland then fed the ball to Martin, who got fouled on the shot. He went to the line but missed both. Huntland drove in for two on their next play to make it Hornets 47, Raiders 40.
Moore County answered with points by Copeland, forced the turnover, then White scored down the right side to cut the lead back to three. He again drew the “and one” foul. This time he made it to make it a one possession game with a little over three minutes to play. Then, a savvy Copeland snagged the inbound pass and put it up for two to tie the game at 47-47 with 3:04 to play. Huntland earned a technical fouls based on some after extracurriculars. Copeland made the shot to earn the lead and immediately got the ball back. Copeland again went up for two. He missed but Martin snagged the rebound and went back up to two to give the Raiders a three-point lead.
Moore County held on down the stretch to earn the 55-22 win and their first District 9A win.
Dawson White led for Moore County with 19 points followed by Alex Copeland with 14. Both Sawyer Parks (8) and Logan Hegwood (6) came off the bench and combined for another 14 points. Wes Clifton added four points and Gavin Wise swished a basket.
The Raiders will travel to Eagleville on Friday for their second district match up with Eagleville on Friday. As a reminder to fans who plan to travel with the team, all Rutherford County schools implement a clear bag policy for all spectators at high school athletic events. One clear tote no larger than 12x6x12 or small clutch is allowed per person. Purses, backpacks, diaper bags, etc. are not allowed.
If you can’t attend in person, the Moore County Sports Broadcasting Team will live stream the game on the NFHS Network. The Times will also live blog the action on our Facebook page. •
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