On Wednesday afternoon, the Coffee County Lady Raiders returned to the TSSAA state basketball tournament for the first time in 31 years.
The Lady Raiders got things rolling in the first quarter as they jumped to a 22-9 lead over Dobyns-Bennett. Coffee County held a solid advantage 32-20 at the halftime break. The Lady Indians cut the lead to 5 with 1:05 to go in the third quarter. Thanks to an outstanding effort at the free throw, the Lady Raiders remained in front 38-31 going into the 4th. This is despite only hitting on one field goal in the third. In The final quarter, Coffee County stayed steady and continued to knock down free throws on their way to a 48-39 quarterfinal win.
For the game, the Lady Raiders hit an impressive 21 of 23 free throws to Dobyns-Bennett’s 2 of 5. Jules Ferrell was 6 for 6 at the charity stripe, and the Dr Jay Trussler/Rooster 101.5 Player of the Game Natalie Barnes was 5 for 5. She finished with a game-high 18 points.
Channah Gannon also hit for double figures with 12 points and a team-high 7 rebounds. Olivia Vinson had 7 points, and Ella Arnold had 5.
Next up in the semifinals will be Bradley Central, the Class 4-A defending state champion. They knocked off previously unbeaten Clarksville 62-30 on Wednesday.
In other local games, Lincoln County lost to Cleveland 60-44, and Moore County defeated Clay County 58-55 in overtime.
