By Ashley Hargrove
COXEY — Sonya Marks didn’t waste any time giving her team its first tough challenge of the year.
The opponent just happened to be a perennial powerhouse program seven miles west across the river.
In just its second game of the season, the Clements girls’ basketball team played host to Lauderdale County in a game that proved to be somewhat physical at times. However the Lady Colts hung on at the end for a 63-60 win over the Lady Tigers.
“It started getting a little rough but I’m really proud of the girls for hanging in there and sticking together the way they did,” Marks said. “They did what they had to to win.”
Clements led 14-6 with a little over two minutes left to play in the first quarter, but a 9-0 run by Lauderdale County put the Lady Tigers up by one with eight seconds left. The Lady Colts regained the lead seconds later as Carson Gafford hit a layup at the buzzer to take a 16-15 lead into the second period.
Clements led 31-24 at the half and never trailed again.
The Lady Colts took a 16-point lead into the fourth quarter but Lauderdale County slowly inched its way back into the game, narrowing the lead to 61-58 with less than a minute remaining. Lacey Hampton hit a layup for the Lady Tigers with seven seconds remaining to close the gap to just one point. Clements’ Jordan Beggs sank both shots from the charity stripe to seal the win.
