Coffee County left no doubt from the start Friday night against visiting Columbia.
The Central High School Lady Raider defense smothered Columbia and Bella Vinson dominated on the offensive end to the tune of 32 points en route to a 59-28 thrashing of the Lady Lions.
“I’m getting down in the post more and I feel like that’s where we are more successful,” said Vinson, who combined to score 61 points in two district games this week. “We put some sets in that has really changed our offense and we got some other girls scoring and I’m happy as long as we are winning.”
Defense was the name of the game for Coffee County. Columbia didn’t score until 1:05 remaining in the first quarter, and that came on a pair of free throws from Ryleigh Hamm. The Lady Raiders held the Lady Lions without a field goal until 5:25 to play in the second quarter.
Coffee County led 16-2 after one quarter and 27-9 at the half, extending to 57-20 midway through the fourth when the Lady Raiders started substituting liberally.
Sophomore post Chloe Gannon finished with 16 points in the post, picking up tough points around the basket. Elli Chumley scored 5, Emma Fulks 4 and Remi Benjamin 2. The Lady Raiders were 14-of-18 at the charity stripe – starting off 9-for-9 to help build a comfortable lead.
The win pushes Coffee County to 18-1 on the season and a perfect 7-0 in District 8-AAA. The Lady Raiders remain ranked in the Associated Press Top 10.
The Lady Raiders travel to Lake County, Tennessee Saturday for a 3:30 p.m. tip. That game will be broadcast live on Thunder Radio, beginning with the Powers Storage Pregame show at 3:15 p.m. Listen at 107.9 FM, 1320 AM, 106.7 FM, Manchester Go smartphone app and thunder1320.com
