Colonels nip Brookhaven in 59-58 thriller

Copiah Academy halted a two-game losing streak as Dillon Martin made a free throw with 3 seconds left to give the Colonels a 59-58 victory over the visiting Brookhaven Academy Cougars last Saturday. They sealed the win by grabbing a rebound off the missed second free throw.
CA (4-2) led 18-12 after the first period and 34-26 at halftime. But Brookhaven narrowed the gap to four, 44-40, by outscoring the Colonels 14-10 in the third quarter. Ty Quick scored 9 of his 18 points in the final 8 minutes to help Copiah hold on for the victory. The senior post player also had 8 rebounds and 5 blocks for the winners.
Other CA totals included Bryce Berry with 14 points and 11 rebounds, Martin with 13 points and 3 steals, Josh Cook with 12 points, and Trey Moss with 2 points.
Earlier in the week, the Colonels were on the other end of a close game as they lost a 65-64 heartbreaker to the Simpson Academy Cougars in Gallman. CA led 18-12 after the first quarter and 37-23 at halftime. But the Cougars came roaring back as they outscored Copiah 24-10 in the third period to tie the score at 47-47.
In a nip-and-tuck final quarter, CA had a chance to tie it on 3 free throws with less than a second remaining. The first two were good, by the final one rolled out as time expired.
Bryce Berry led the Colonels with 19 points, 14 rebounds, and 4 blocked shots. Ty Quick and Trey Moss were close behind with 18 points each; Quick also grabbed 14 rebounds. Other Copiah totals included Justin Morris with 5 points, Dillon Martin with 2 points and 5 rebounds, and Josh Cook with 2 points.
CA traveled to Bowling Green on Thursday, where the Colonels dropped a 48-36 decision to the Buccaneers. Bowling Green jumped out to a 16-8 first-quarter lead, but Copiah rallied in the second period and trailed by only three, 29-26, at the half. The Bucs increased their lead to eleven, 40-29, as they outscored the Colonels 11-3 in the third quarter and coasted to victory.
Ty Quick led the losers with 13 points and 8 rebounds. Other Copiah totals included Dillon Martin with 6 points and 8 rebounds, Josh Cook with 6 points and 4 rebounds, Trey Moss with 5 points, and Justin Morris and Palmer Lea with 3 points apiece.

The Copiah Academy Lady Colonels opened last week with a heartbreaking 51-48 home loss to the Simpson Academy Lady Cougars.
Simpson led 10-8 after the opening period and increased its lead to 28-19 by halftime. CA outscored the Lady Cougars 14-6 in the third quarter and trailed by only one, 35-34, heading into the final stanza. Unfortunately, the Lady Colonels missed a lot of shots down the stretch as Simpson hung on for the narrow win.
Kelli Berry led Copiah with 12 points. Taylor Wilson was also in double figures with 10 points. Other CA totals included Kamryn Vanlandingham with 9 points, Kaylie Carpenter with 7 points, Victoria Allen and Kelly Byrd with 4 points each, and Carleigh Roberts with 2 points.
On Thursday night, the Lady Colonels traveled to Bowling Green, LA, where they were beaten 46-31 by the Lady Bucs. The teams were tied 4-4 after one quarter, but Bowling Green overwhelmed CA 30-6 in the second quarter and led 34-10 at halftime. Copiah outscored the Lady Bucs 21-12 the rest of the way, but it was a case of too little, too late.
Kamryn Vanlandingham led the Lady Colonels with 11 points. Other Copiah totals included Kaylie Carpenter with 6 points, Lindsey Walker and Kelly Byrd with 4 points each, Kaitlin Cooksey with 3 points, Kelli Berry with 2 points, and Victoria Allen with one point.
CA (5-3) got back on the winning track by mauling the Brookhaven Academy Lady Cougars 47-22 in Gallman last Saturday night despite committing 20 turnovers. Copiah led 13-7 after the first period, 22-15 at halftime, and 36-18 after three quarters enroute to the easy win.
Kamryn Vanlandingham led the winners with 18 points, followed by Kelly Byrd with a double-double, 14 points and 11 rebounds. Other Copiah totals included Taylor Wilson with 5 points, Kaylie Carpenter with 4 points, and a trio of players with 2 points apiece: Kaitlin Cooksey, Kelli Berry, and Victoria Allen.