Tharptown hands Belgreen second-straight loss
By Bart Moss / For the FCT
The Tharptown Wildcats handed the Belgreen Bulldogs their second straight loss Saturday, winning 58-50. The Bulldogs lost to Phil Campbell just two nights earlier by almost the same score. The games were almost carbon copies of each other.
“I am so proud of our guys,” said Tharptown coach Shannon Benford. “We have been focused on this game since we lost the last one at their place. Our guys wanted to win. They believed they could win and took the game to them.”
The Wildcats clearly gave Belgreen’s Mason Bragwell some extra attention, limiting him to just seven points and forcing him into some early foul trouble. Tharptown also seemed content to slow the game down and not try to get into a scoring battle with the typically high-scoring Bulldog team.
“We wanted to make sure Bragwell didn’t beat us,” said Benford. “He’s such a good ball player. He is big and tough to handle inside, and he can step outside the three-point line and drain shots, too. We had to make someone else beat us.”
A tight game all the way, Tharptown was able to get some breathing room in the fourth quarter thanks to some clutch three-pointers by senior Levi McCormack and critical free throws by senior Aaron Creasy, who went five-for-six from the line.
“Our seniors stepped up tonight,” said Benford. “These guys love being in the gym and love playing together. Those were some big shots down the stretch. I am most pleased with the defensive effort we gave tonight, though.”
Tharptown led Belgreen 13-12 at the end of the first quarter. Belgreen came back in the second quarter to take a 24-23 halftime lead. Both teams played to a stalemate in the third quarter, with the Bulldogs holding a one-point lead, 38-37, heading into the final period of play.
Tharptown exploded for 21 points in the fourth quarter, including a 12-0 run sparked by a long three-pointer by McCormack.
Cole Daniel led Tharptown with 15 points. McCormack followed with 14 points and Creasy with 10 points. Edward Lopez finished with eight points, Misael Saldana with six points, Carson Petree three points and Winston Nolen two points.
Seth Taylor led Belgreen with 16 points. He was followed by Jacob Mayberry and Peyton Scott scoring 10 points each. Eli Hiser finished with five points and Gaven Taylor with two points.
Varsity Girls: Belgreen 57, Tharptown 29
Gracie Dempsey helped the Belgreen Bulldogs snap a two-game losing skid, defeating the Tharptown Wildcats 57-29 Saturday in an area makeup game.
Belgreen jumped out to a 11-3 first quarter lead and extended the lead to 30-17 at halftime. The Bulldogs blew the game open in the third quarter, out-scoring Tharptown 22-5 to take a 52-22 lead into the final period of play.
Gracie Dempsey led all scorers with 18 points. Jasmine Martin followed with 12 points. Autumn Bragwell added nine points, Ansley Tate six points, Emma Dempsey three points, Camie Terrell three points, Gabbie Moore two points, Emma Willingham two points and Katie Dempsey two points.
Shaylee Wieting led Tharptown with ten points. Adrianna Borden added six points, Brooke Daily five points, Aly Vandiver four points, Caite Dawson three points and Ameliah Dawson one point.
