BREMEN, Ala. — The Cold Springs Eagles were back home in their newly-built gymnasium Friday night battling their county rivals from Fairview and the Aggies and Eagles split their varsity matchups. The Lady Eagles overcame a slow start and held off a late push from the Lady Aggies to collect a 35-26 win and improve to 10-0 this season. In the boys’ game, Fairview outscored Cold Springs 29-12 in the third quarter to pull away from the Eagles and return home with a 77-46 win.
Cold Springs 35 – Fairview 26 (varsity girls)
Both teams got off to a slow start in this one. An Ella Dickerson basket put the game’s first points on the board and gave Cold Springs a 2-0 lead with three minutes remaining in the opening period, but Darby Nichols answered with a Fairview basket on the other end to tie the game at 2 and that was the score at the end of the first.
Kenady Graves drained a three to give the Lady Eagles a 5-2 lead at the start of the second and after a Jayla Gorham basket on the other end, Ella Bruer drilled a three to make it an 8-4 game. Dickerson scored off a turnover to stretch the lead to 10-4 and Ciara Calvert split a pair of free throws to make it 11-4 midway through the second quarter. Nichols drained a pair of free throws for Fairview to trim the lead to 11-6 with just over a minute to play in the first half but Malaya Taylor scored through a foul and sank the free throw to stretch the lead to 14-6. Maci Brown added a free throw in the final 30 seconds of the period to put Cold Springs in front 15-6 at the break.
Dickerson scored inside and Nichols netted a pair of free throws to make it a 17-8 game early in the third but back to back buckets from Lexi Collins cut the lead to 17-12. Dickerson and Collins exchanged free throws to make it 18-13 midway through the period. After another Gorham basket trimmed the lead to 18-15, Bruer knocked down a three to keep the Lady Eagles ahead 21-15 but in the final 30 seconds of the third, Peyton Defoor drained a three to make it a 21-18 game going into the final frame.
Three-pointers by Calvert and Dickerson extended the Cold Springs lead to 27-18 early in the fourth but baskets from Gorham, Defoor and Davi Stidham cut the lead back down to 27-24. Taylor scored a pair of buckets in the paint to give the Lady Eagles a 31-24 lead with three minutes on the clock. Collins drained a pair of free throws to make it a 31-26 game with 1:30 to play but Brown sank four of her next six free throw attempts in the final minute of the game to secure a hard-fought, 35-26 win for Cold Springs.
Dickerson led the Lady Eagles with 10 points in the win, followed by Taylor with seven and Bruer with six.
Collins led Fairview with seven points in the loss and Nichols each finished with six.
Fairview 77 – Cold Springs 46 (varsity boys)
The opening period between the Aggies and Eagles was neck and neck. A quick basket by Cade Yeager off the tip gave Fairview a 2-0 start and Bryson Fletcher drilled a three-pointer to make it 5-0. A pair of baskets by Cole Bales and another bucket from Clayton Terry put the Eagles in front 6-5 but Blake Rickard scored in transition to put the Aggies ahead 7-6. Bales and Rickard exchanged baskets back and forth to tie the game at 11 midway through the first and Matt Williams laid one in to give Cold Springs a 13-11 lead. The score was tied back up at 15 later in the period and after Williams split a pair of free throws to give the Eagles a 1-point lead, Payne scored in the final 30 seconds of the first to give the Aggies a 17-16 lead going into the second. There were seven lead changes and three different ties in the first quarter.
A Kilgo free throw tied things up at 17 at the start of the second quarter but Rickard converted an and-one play on the other end to put Fairview back in front 20-17. Rickard exchanged buckets with Seth Ingram to make it a 22-19 game and after a pair of Jac Dunn free throws, AJ Wood laid one in to stretch the Aggie lead to 26-19 with five minutes remaining in the first half. Trailing 30-21 ater in the second, Josh Winfrey drilled a corner three to trim the lead to 30-24 and after baskets by Payne and Fletcher on the other end, Winfrey knocked down another three just before the buzzer to make it a 32-27 game at halftime.
The Aggies came out aggressive to start the second half, putting pressure on the Eagles defensively and creating easy scoring opportunities. A basket by Bales trimmed the Fairview lead to 36-30 early in the period but the Aggies responded with a 17-2 scoring to begin pulling away. Payne scored 11 of Fairview’s 17 points during the run, helping the Aggies build a 53-32 lead later in the period. A Kilgo three-pointer cut into the lead in the final minute of the third, but Trace Richardson scored with 15 seconds on the clock and Rickard laid one in at the buzzer to put Fairview on top 61-39 going into the fourth.
Buckets from Yeager and Carson Jones kept the Aggies ahead 65-42 early in the fourth quarter and Fletcher buried a three to make it 68-42 with just over four minutes to play. Ingram continued to battle and score for the Eagles on the other end, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the Aggie lead and Fairview went on to win it 77-46.
Rickard led the Aggies with 21 points in the win, followed by Payne with 17 and Fletcher with 13. Bales led the way for Cold Springs in the loss with 14 and Ingram finished with nine.
Cold Springs will be back home Monday to host Hanceville and Fairview will return home Tuesday night to host Guntersville.
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