Staff writer
WHITESVILLE - The Cougar JV squad used a 23-5 run to break open a tight game at Whitesville and send them on to an opening-night, 44-26 win over the Raiders.
After the Cougars had scored the first four points of the game, the Raiders responded with seven straight to go up 7-4 with 1:10 left in the first quarter. Freshman Bennett Skaggs then hit a six-foot runner with 55 seconds remaining, and freshman Chris Stewart added a 10-footer to put the Cougars ahead 8-7 heading into the second period.
Whitesville's Ben Rhodes scored on a layup at the 3:37 mark to put the Raiders back in front 12-11 before Stewart buried a three-pointer to ignite the Cougar run and put them in the lead for good. Grayson County outscored the Raiders 11-2 over the final three minutes of the first half and led 22-14 heading into the intermission.
Whitesville pulled to within seven points, 24-17 at the 3:56 mark of the third quarter, but the Cougars scored 10 straight to go up by 17 with one minute remaining in the period.
Whitesville scored the last five points of the period to pull to within 12, 34-22 heading into the fourth quarter, but a Stewart three-pointer opening the fourth quarter, two Skaggs free throws and a layup from eighth-grader Tyler Saltsman ran the lead up to 19 points, 41-22, with 3:31 left to play and the Cougars cruised home.
Stewart led all scorers in the game, hitting a pair of three-pointers on his way to a game-high 12 points. Skaggs hit one three on the night and joined Stewart in double figures with 11.
The Cougars got good minutes from all three eighth-grade players, especially Saltsman, who finished with nine points and some key rebounds. Cody Mattingly had three points and Aaron Deviney had two.
Timmy Yochim played well in the post for the Cougars, finishing with four points. Grant Buckles had two points, while Wes Smith had one to complete the Cougar scoring.
The JV Cougars will be back in action on Tuesday, December 6 when they play host to the Tigers of Breckinridge County. Game time is set for 6 p.m.
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