APA sweeps BCA in cross-county clash
Arendell Parrott picked up wins against its cross-town rival Friday, one much closer than the other.
In the boys’ game, the Patriots staved off Bethel Christian for a 51-47 victory. APA was without Cole Dawson, Asher Lowry and Mir Mir Moore, but were able to withstand a few Trojan comebacks to improve to 2-3 on the season.
“It’s a team-building win and we were able to missing a couple of our best players,” APA coach Clay Harrell said. “They’re gritty and mentally tough, and we were able to get it done in a tough environment — Bethel gave us a great game.”
The teams were close for most of the first half. Bethel Christian (2-2) jumped out to a 7-4 lead midway through the first after a steal and layup from Alex Hill, but Paxton Riley’s basket in the waning second of the frame put the Patriots ahead for good at 14-12. BCA got within 21-19 with 3:05 left in the second after a Malachi Ramsey score, but APA ended the half on an 8-2 run, punctuated by Marshall Taylor’s putback as time expired to make it 29-21. The Patriots kept the pressure on and when Fletcher Jones scored inside, APA lead 35-21 early in the third.
Bethel Christian fought back as Joshua Holmes and Tyler Sanderson scored nine points in a 12-0 run, ended by Ramsey’s free throw to bring the Trojans within two. APA did push the lead to eight in the fourth, but BCA continued to fight and eventually got within 48-47 after two Hill free throws with 38.4 seconds to play.
On the other end, Riley was fouled with 17.6 seconds left and faced a 1-and-1. The junior calmly knocked the free throws down to put the Patriots ahead 50-47.
“I stayed calm and was able to knock the shots down,” Riley said.
Bethel Christian missed a 3-pointer on the other end and Noah Miller hit the game-clinching free throw with 2 seconds left.
Bethel Christian coach Bert Potter said the team’s effort was there the entire contest.
“I thought they played hard and if some of those shots went down, it might’ve been a different game,” Potter said. “I’m not disappointed in the efforts and we’re still learning—it’s still early in the season, so we don’t have our offensive and defensive rotations set like we want to. While we’re learning, I still wanted them to play hard, and they have.”
Arendell Parrott picked up wins against its cross-town rival Friday, one much closer than the other.
In the boys’ game, the Patriots staved off Bethel Christian for a 51-47 victory. APA was without Cole Dawson, Asher Lowry and Mir Mir Moore, but were able to withstand a few Trojan comebacks to improve to 2-3 on the season.
“It’s a team-building win and we were able to missing a couple of our best players,” APA coach Clay Harrell said. “They’re gritty and mentally tough, and we were able to get it done in a tough environment — Bethel gave us a great game.”
The teams were close for most of the first half. Bethel Christian (2-2) jumped out to a 7-4 lead midway through the first after a steal and layup from Alex Hill, but Paxton Riley’s basket in the waning second of the frame put the Patriots ahead for good at 14-12. BCA got within 21-19 with 3:05 left in the second after a Malachi Ramsey score, but APA ended the half on an 8-2 run, punctuated by Marshall Taylor’s putback as time expired to make it 29-21. The Patriots kept the pressure on and when Fletcher Jones scored inside, APA lead 35-21 early in the third.
Bethel Christian fought back as Joshua Holmes and Tyler Sanderson scored nine points in a 12-0 run, ended by Ramsey’s free throw to bring the Trojans within two. APA did push the lead to eight in the fourth, but BCA continued to fight and eventually got within 48-47 after two Hill free throws with 38.4 seconds to play.
On the other end, Riley was fouled with 17.6 seconds left and faced a 1-and-1. The junior calmly knocked the free throws down to put the Patriots ahead 50-47.
“I stayed calm and was able to knock the shots down,” Riley said.
Bethel Christian missed a 3-pointer on the other end and Noah Miller hit the game-clinching free throw with 2 seconds left.
Bethel Christian coach Bert Potter said the team’s effort was there the entire contest.
“I thought they played hard and if some of those shots went down, it might’ve been a different game,” Potter said. “I’m not disappointed in the efforts and we’re still learning—it’s still early in the season, so we don’t have our offensive and defensive rotations set like we want to. While we’re learning, I still wanted them to play hard, and they have.”
