Dry spell continues: WCHS washed away at Cookeville
COOKEVILLE — The Pioneers faced a hefty challenge Friday night, as they were looking to break their losing streak in District 7-AAA play against the always-tough Cookeville Cavaliers.
That challenge was intensified prior to the game, with the loss of two members of the starting lineup, including the team’s top scorer. But the Cavaliers were at full strength, and then some, as they rolled to a 71-46 Homecoming victory.
Coach Chris Turner’s Pioneer squad entered the game missing senior Jeremiah Hodges, who injured his ankle during practice on Thursday. Hodges had started the team’s previous three contests while Kyle Thompson recovered from an illness.
The team also had to go into battle without senior Reese Bishop, who was benched for disciplinary reasons.
“Reese made a mistake,” Turner said prior to Friday’s game, “and we hope he’ll move on from this, and learn from it.”
With Bishop on the pine, fellow senior Ross Marlowe stepped into the Pioneers’ dominant role on offense, pouring in a team-high 18 points, including a pair of 3-pointers. Cookeville used some long-distance accuracy of its own, however, nailing seven 3’s to capture the victory.
With the win, the Cavaliers improved to 14-11 overall and 5-7 in district play.
Warren County, which lost its fourth straight, dropped to 7-15 overall and 0-12 in the league standings.
John Rader, who finished with a game-high 24 points, buried a pair of 3-pointers to help the Cavaliers rebound from a slow start in Friday’s contest. Warren County’s Kyle Thompson and Brandon Adcock had given their team an early 4-0 lead, but the Cavs responded with a 13-0 run to go up 13-4 by the quarter’s end.
The second period saw Marlowe score nine of his team-high total, but Cookeville countered the Pioneers’ 15 points with 22 of their own, including seven from Taylor Stearman. Tyler Wolf canned a 3-pointer with five seconds remaining in the half, and the Cavs went into intermission holding a 35-19 lead.
A 9-0 Cookeville run to start the third quarter helped seal the Pioneers’ fate, and the Cavaliers poured it on in the fourth, scoring 22 points in the period — including two more Stearman 3’s — to lock up the win.
In addition to Rader’s 24, Stearman finished with 17 points, while Matt Hill and Wolf had seen each. Eleven different players cracked the scoring column in the Cavaliers’ winning effort.
Marlowe was the only Pioneer to reach double figures. Shay Glenn, returning to the lineup from an ankle injury, had seven points. Brooks Majors and Todd Gilley scored five each, while Thompson and Adcock finished with four. Andrew Deason chipped in two, and Warren Swann finished with a free throw.
The Pioneers hit the road next week, traveling to Murfreesboro Siegel on Tuesday and taking on Lebanon Friday night.