Coffee County’s Lady Raider basketball team picked up on Friday night where it left off on Thursday night.
Coffee County pounced on Siegel 20-0 in the first quarter and cruised to a 65-15 win over the visiting Lady Stars Friday night at Joe Frank Patch Memorial Gymnasium in Manchester (a game that was broadcast live on Thunder Radio).
The win moves the Lady Raiders to 2-0 on the season, having outscored their opponents 155-37.
“These kids play hard,” said CHS head coach Joe Pat Cope following the Lady Raider win over Siegel. “They bring it every day. They live it, they talk it, they breathe it. Every kid we got just wants to win.”
Coffee County won from the tip on Friday night. The Lady Raiders led 20-0 after the first quarter and had a 31-0 lead before Siegel scored its first points, a free throw from Erin Van Hook with 4 minutes to play in the first half. Siegel didn’t pick up its first field goal until there were two minutes left in the first half.
Most of that was due to the Lady Raiders’ smothering defense – forcing over 20 turnovers, led by sophomore guard Jalie Ruehling, who was named the Stone Fort Mortgage Player of the Game by Thunder Radio. Ruehling finished with 17 points, including a trio of 3-pointers.
The Lady Raiders went on to lead 41-3 at the half and 51-5 after three quarters before substituting liberally. Despite the dominating performance, Ruehling still sees room for improvement.
“I think we need to be smarter with some of our passes, quicker on defense,” said Ruehling, who added that there is always room for improvement.
CHS senior Bella Vinson led the way on offense for Coffee County with 22 points – giving her 58 over her first two games. Vinson set the tone for 9 different Lady Raiders who got into the scorebook.
The Lady Raiders will certainly get more of a challenge in their next game – Tuesday when they host the White County Warriorettes. Tip is set for 6 p.m. and you can hear on Thunder Radio: 107.9 FM, 106.7 FM, 1320 AM, thunder1320.com, Manchester Go app and on Amazon Alexa (“Alexa, Play Thunder Radio.”)
“I’m definitely looking forward to [playing White County],” said Rueling. “I know it’s going to be tough, and we just have to prepare and be ready for that.”
Miss the Friday night broadcast over Siegel? Listen to the Thunder Radio broadcast by clicking here.
Lady Raiders in the scorebook:
Miranda Medley – 2 points
Remi Benjamin – 2 points
Jalie Ruehling – 17 points
Emma Fulks – 2 points
Alivia Reel – 4 points
Bella Vinson – 22 points
Elli Chumley – 7 points
Chloe Gannon – 5 points
Elizabeth Browh – 4 points
