Varsity falls to 2 seed after losing at Sparta

Warren County Middle School?s varsity boys suffered their second loss of the season Saturday evening, falling to the No. 2 spot in the Central Tennessee Conference with a 43-39 defeat at Sparta.

Trailing by just a basket (15-13) after a period of play, the Pioneers fell further behind in the second, scoring nine points while giving up 13 in the second quarter.

They righted their ship after the halftime break, and entered the game?s final stanza with a 35-34 lead. But the Warrior defense kept the Pioneers in check in the fourth quarter, holding them to four points while rallying for nine of their own to capture the victory ? their second of the year over the Pioneers.

With the win, Sparta took the top seed for the CTC tournament, which began Monday night at Warren County Middle. The Pioneers, as the No. 2 seed, fell to 16-2 overall and 12-2 in CTC play. They were slated to take on seventh-seeded Coffee County Tuesday evening.

Mitchell McCorkle led the Pioneers? efforts Saturday, scoring 13 points, while Tyler Glenn and Jaylan Mount had six each. Michael Thrower and Caleb Underhill had five apiece, with Tylan Martin scoring four, all in the second quarter.

The Warriors were led by an 18-point game from Daniel Duke, while Robbie Johnson had eight and Josh Turner added six. Sparta nailed down the victory by hitting 5-of-8 from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter.

White County also finished with two regular-season losses, but took the top seed on the strength of its two wins over Warren County.