Colonels nip Bowling Green in thriller

By James Beasley
In a game that saw 4 ties and 7 lead changes, the Copiah Academy Colonels rallied from 5 points down in the final 2:43 to edge the Bowling Green School Bucs 51-50 in Gallman last Friday. The much-needed win came after a pair of losses earlier in the week to Presbyterian Christian and Simpson Academy, respectively, and left CA with an overall 12-9 record.
In Friday’s game, Copiah led 20-17 after one quarter, thanks to Ty Quick’s 12 points and a pair of 3-pointers by Josh Cook. Cook connected on two more 3’s in the second period, but the Bucs outscored CA 19-12 and led 36-32 at the half. Bowling Green was still leading by one, 40-39, after three quarters, and pushed its lead to five, 51-46, late in the game.
At that point, Cook sank his fifth 3-pointer of the night to cut the lead to two, and Bryce Berry hit a jump shot to tie the game 50-50 with 1:08 left. Then with 13 seconds remaining, Berry was fouled and sank the front end of a one-and-one to give the Colonels their winning margin.
Quick led Copiah with 18 points and 11 rebounds, followed by Cook with 17 points, and Berry with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Michael Bagley had 5 points for the winners, while Zane Frazier chipped in with 2 points. Meanwhile, the Bucs’ Mac McElveen led all scorers with 23 points, including 5 treys.   
Earlier in the week, Presbyterian Christian outscored Copiah 21-7 in the third period and went on to beat the Colonels 55-41 in Gallman. The Bobcats led 12-6 after one quarter, only to have CA rally for a 22-21 lead at the half. Then came the pivotal third quarter, from which the Colonels never recovered.
Michael Bagley led Copiah with 13 points. Devin Harper was also in double figures with 11 points. Other CA totals included Bryce Berry with 6 points and 8 rebounds, Ty Quick with 5 points and 7 rebounds, and Josh Cook and Dale Stratton with 3 points each.
Last Thursday, archrival Simpson Academy invaded Gallman, where they outscored CA 29-16 in the second half for a 48-38 victory. Michael Bagley led the Colonels with 14 points and also had 8 rebounds. Bryce Berry was also in double figures with 10 points. Other Copiah totals included Ty Quick with 8 points and a monstrous 19 rebounds, Devin Harper with 4 points, and Josh Cook with 2 points. Josh Hankins led the winners with a game-high 24 points.
Girls’ Action
The Copiah Academy varsity girls continued their pattern of playing hard but falling short as they dropped a trio of games at home last week.
On Tuesday, the Lady Colonels were beaten by the 16-4 Presbyterian Christian Lady Bobcats 56-33. After a close first quarter, Presbyterian Christian outscored CA 19-4 in the second period and took control, leading 33-16 at halftime.
Sarah Claire Armstrong and Carleigh Roberts led Copiah with 11 points apiece, while Taylor Wilson and Kacie Berry closed out the CA scoring with 8 and 3 points, respectively. Molly Speed led the winners with 16 points, followed by Trista Magee with 14 points.
Two nights later, Simpson Academy (15-7) outscored Copiah Academy 19-14 in the fourth quarter to beat the Lady Colonels 64-57. The Lady Cougars led 15-14 after one quarter, 32-28 at the half, and 45-43 after three periods before pulling away in the final eight minutes to earn the victory.
CA’s Taylor Wilson led all scorers with 23 points. Carleigh Roberts was also in double figures with 16 points. Other Copiah totals included Kacie Berry with 8 points, freshman Kamryn Vanlandingham with 7 points, and Sarah Claire Armstrong with 3 points.
On Friday night, the Bowling Green Lady Bucs jumped out to a 22-13 lead in the first quarter, increased their margin to 22 points, 48-26, by halftime, and maintained the lead the rest of the way as they whipped Copiah Academy 73-51 in Gallman.
CA’s Carleigh Roberts led all scorers with 22 points. Taylor Wilson was also in double figures with 17 points. Also scoring for the Lady Colonels were Sarah Claire Armstrong with 6 points, Elizabeth Pyron with 4 points, and Kacie Berry with 2 points.