Lady Colonels pick up 2 wins, Colonels 1 heading into post-season

BY JAMES BEASLEY

Copiah Academy’s Emily Fahner scored 20 points, including all 11 of CA’s 1st quarter total, to lead the Lady Colonels past the Bowling Green Lady Bucs 43-32 in Gallman last Friday.

Fahner’s 3-pointer at the buzzer tied the score 11-11 after the first period. Copiah trailed 20-17 at halftime, and fell behind by as many as 7 points in the third quarter. But Caroline Beach was fouled while making a 3-pointer and sank the free throw, completing a 4-point play that pulled CA within one, 27-26. Fahner’s basket 30 seconds later gave the Lady Colonels a lead they never relinquished.

Madelon Cline sank a pair of free throws and hit a 3-pointer early in the final quarter, increasing Copiah’s margin to 9 points. From that point, the Lady Colonels were never threatened.

In addition to Fahner, other CA totals included Beach with 8 points, Cline with 7 points, Ashley Baham with 4 points, and Amanda Pyron and Rachel Strait with 2 points apiece.

Copiah 67, Silliman 49

Copiah Academy outscored the Silliman Institute Lady Wildcats 38-25 in the second half en route to a 67-49 win at the Lady Colonels’ last home game of the season. CA finished the regular season with a record of 18-11 and faces Columbia Academy at the District Tournament in Brookhaven this Friday.

CA led 29-24 at halftime, went up by 7 after Caroline Beach’s trey in the third period, and forged ahead 43-32 heading into the final stanza. The Lady Wildcats, with only six players, cut the margin to 5 points, but Copiah’s Ashley Baham drained consecutive 3’s to increase the lead to 52-41 midway through the fourth quarter. Beach’s trey with 2:35 left iced the game as CA won going away.

The Lady Colonels had 3 players in double figures: Amanda Pyron with a game-high 16 points, Emily Fahner with 13 points, and Ashley Baham with 11 points. Other CA totals included Madelon Cline with 8 points, Caroline Beach and Rachel Strait with 6 points each, 9th-grader Courtney Pyron with 3 points, and Lori Baham and Brooke Wilson with 2 points apiece.

    BOYS’ ACTION

Bowling Green 61, Copiah 41

The Copiah Academy boys gave undefeated Bowling Green, 26-0, a run for its money before the Bucs pulled away in the final quarter for a 61-41 victory in Gallman last Friday night.

The Colonels trailed by only three, 13-10, after one quarter and were tied 19-19 with less than two minutes remaining in the half. From that point, Bowling Green went on an 8-2 run and led 27-22 lead at intermission.

The Bucs increased their margin to ten, 38-28, in the third period, and outscored the Colonels 23-13 over the final eight minutes.

Hunter Greer led Copiah with 12 points, while teammate Scotty Reese was close behind with 9 points and 11 rebounds. Other CA scorers included Reece Hankins with 5 points, Matthew Wright with 5 points and 4 assists, Clay Price with 4 points, and Ben Boone and Brandon Smith with 3 points each.

Copiah 65, Silliman 49

Hunter Greer scored 29 points in his final varsity game at Copiah Academy to lead the Colonels to a 65-49 victory over the Silliman Institute Wildcats last Saturday. CA completed the regular season with an 8-15 record and faced Prentiss Christian on Monday, February 4, in the District Tournament at Brookhaven Academy.

Greer’s 9 points in the first quarter gave CA a 12-9 lead. The Colonels increased their halftime margin to double digits, 28-17, and led 45-35 heading into the fourth quarter. Greer  scored 12 points over the last 8 minutes as Copiah pulled away for the non-conference win.

In addition to Greer, CA was led by Scotty Reese, who scored 23 points. Clay Price and Reece Hankins added 8 and 5 points, respectively, to complete the Copiah scoring.