CORNERSVILLE, Tenn. — Some things are just bigger than the game. Though the Moore County Raiders and Fayetteville Tigers have always enjoyed a friendly rivalry, what happened after Tuesday night’s Region 5A Championship game seemed special. The Raiders had just lost 64-43 to the Tigers and as they shook hands after, the Tigers coaches and players asked Moore County to meet center court for a moment of silence for Isaiah Petty, the MCHS senior our community lost on February 25. The players, coaches, trainer, and staff locked arms mid-court as fans looked on.
It was the fourth meeting and the fourth loss against the Tigers for the Raiders. Fayetteville defeated Moore County during the regular season 69-36 in Lynchburg on January 13 and again 75-49 in Lincoln County on January 31. Moore County got within 10 points of the Tigers on February 15 in the District 9A Semifinal – a game that was tied at halftime.
Moore County got off to a sluggish first period on Tuesday – settling for just four points off baskets from Alex Copeland and Will Baker, while allowing the Tigers to score 13. The Raiders picked up the pace in the second period – outscoring the Tiger by four – thanks in no small part to a 3-point hot streak from Copeland. He made five treys in the second period to pull the Raiders within five at halftime.
The Tigers started to pull away in the third – building a 46-34 lead heading into the final period. The Final score was 64-43.
Alex Copeland led for Moore County with 26 points including six from the perimeter. Will Baker follow with 12 points including six from the line and Peyton Martin added five more.
The Raiders move on to a Class 1A Sectional game on Monday night against McKenzie High School at 7 p.m. You can watch live on the NFHS Network or follow The Lynchburg Times Facebook page for live score updates. •
{The Lynchburg Times is an independently-owned, community newspaper located in Lynchburg, Tennessee the home of The Jack Daniel Distillery. We focus on public service, non-partisan, rural journalism. We cover the Metro Moore County government, local tourism, Moore County schools, high school sports, Motlow State Community College, as well as whiskey industry news and regional and state stories that affect our readers.}