A slow start doomed the Cornersville Bulldogs in a 57-40 Homecoming loss Friday night.
The Cornersville Bulldogs (6-12 0-3 District 9-1A) could only tally a single basket in the first quarter against the Raiders (6-9, 1-2). then battled toe-to-toe the rest of the way but could not catch the Raiders as Cornersville fell 57-40.
“The first quarter was detrimental to the end of the ballgame although after the halftime we came out ready to go and cut the lead to ten points. We missed some close-in shots, and we need to work on finishing our shots. We are working hard, and we feel we are on the right path,” Cornersville coach Dakota Brown said.
Hayden Grover for Cornersville finally ended the scoring drought with a basket close in, but at the end of the quarter Cornersville trailed 20-2.
Peyton Martin paced the Raiders in the first quarter with eight points, Alex Copeland added five points.
The second quarter saw the Bulldogs clawing back as Gage Lovell tallied six points and Kale Adcox added five but the damage had been done in the first quarter. Despite outscoring the Raiders 13-12 in the second quarter, Cornersville still trailed 32-15 at halftime.
Brown’s halftime instructions must have motivated the Bulldogs. Cornersville, with the help of three-pointers by Lovell and Carter Neat, cut the lead to 32-22 midway through the third quarter but could not get closer despite Ben Franklin powering in two baskets.
Moore County kept the Bulldogs at arm’s length for the rest of the way and led 43-28 after three quarters.
The fourth quarter saw the Raiders shooting free throws as Dawson White sank 5-of-9 free throws. Cornersville countered with junior Ben Franklin scoring nine points.

Moore County 20 12 11 17 - 57
Cornersville 2 13 13 12 - 40
Moore County (57): Will Baker 16, Alex Copeland 12, Dawson White 11, Peyton Martin 10, Wes Clifton 3, Tristyn Gray 2, Sawyer Parks 2.
Free Throws: (14-22) White 5-of-9, Copeland 3-for-3, Baker 4-of-4, Clifton 0-for-2, Martin 2-for-4.
Three-point Baskets: (4) Baker 2, Copeland, Clifton.
Cornersville (40): Ben Franklin 13, Gage Lovell 9, Kale Adcox 6, Hayden Grover 6, Carter Neat 3, Blaine Woodard 2, Colyn Schilig 1.
Free Throws: (10-23) Adcox 3-for-4, Woodard 2-for-4, Grove 1-for-3, Schilig 1-for-3, Lovell 0-for-1, Franklin 3-for-8.
Three-point Baskets: (3) Lovell, Neat, Adcox.
Halftime Score: Moore County 32, Cornersville 15.