Golden Tigers split with Senators

J.R. Tidwell/FCT Russellville’s Jackson Smith (2) puts up a short jumper over a Sparkman defender Saturday night.

Russellville had the lead in the majority of its match against Sparkman Saturday night, but it’s the final score that counts, as Sparkman edged out Russellville 48-43.

“We had good effort, and we’re playing hard, but we need to get the mental part of our game caught up with our playing hard,” Russellville head coach Michael Smith said.

Russellville had a close lead at the end of the first, but Sparkman took a 26-21 advantage into halftime.

The Golden Tigers fired back to take the lead 36-32 at the end of the third, but a late surge by the Senators allowed them the victory.

Will Bostick led Russellville in scoring with 15. Also scoring for the Golden Tigers were Jackson Smith (10), J.T. Watkins (8), Ben Britnell (4), Jacob Seal (3), Andrew Malone (2) and Terrance Graham (1).

Russellville girl’s varsity 45, Sparkman 37

The Russellville Lady Golden Tigers defeated The Sparkman Lady Senators 45-37 at home Saturday night.

The Lady Golden Tigers led for most of the contest, but Sparkman came back in the third to take a 32-27 lead going into the final quarter.

Russellville outscored its opponent 18-5 in the final eight minutes, giving the Lady Golden Tigers the eight-point victory.

“This is a big win for us,” Russellville head coach James Bostick said. “We did a great job and they all played hard.”

Amber Elliott led the Lady Golden Tigers in scoring with 14 points. Ayanna McCullough also hit double-digits with 13. Also scoring for Russellville were Victoria Jackson (7), Taylor Smith (6) and Ashley Dunstan (5).

“Sparkman is known for its girl’s basketball, so this is a great win for our program,” Bostick said.