The Cornersville Middle School Bulldogs (7-4) defeated Huntland for the third time this season when they went on the road and pummeled the Hornets 53-12 on Monday night.

Coming off an 11-day layoff, the Bulldogs released their pent up energy on Huntland and built a 27-6 lead in the first half before outscoring the Hornets 26-6 over the final two quarters to roll to their third straight victory.

Cornersville finished with 24 field goals on 36 percent shooting, which included a 2-of-10 effort from three-point range, while committing only 13 turnovers. The Bulldogs also dominated the boards and held a 28-9 edge on the offensive glass en route to outrebounding Huntland 48-25 overall.

CMS, meanwhile, limited the Hornets to just six field goals on 21 percent shooting and forced 23 Huntland turnovers with the help of their full court press.

"That's probably the best game we've played as a team from start to finish this year. We played great defense and scored a lot of points in transition after making steals. The guys were in the right spots all night," said Cornersville coach Gerard Randolph. "I've asked a lot out of them and it seems the more games they play the better they get defensively. It feels like everything is falling into place right now."

Kolbe McMahon led the Bulldogs with 14 points, eight rebounds, and three steals, while Darien Bush recorded a double-double and finished with 10 points, 11 rebounds, four steals, and three blocked shots. Cody Umbles added seven points as well, and Cameron Whitaker and Brice Dunkleman both notched six points. Will Vanhooser also chipped in four points for CMS, while Trenton Warren, Caleb Crowell, and C.J. Coble had two points apiece.

Bryson Foster, Alex Simmons, and Brandon Yarbrough scored four points each to pace the Hornets.

Huntland took a 2-0 lead on a layup by Simmons, but things quickly went downhill for the Hornets after that point, as the Bulldogs put together a 23-0 run on the strength of eight points from Bush, seven points from McMahon, and six points from Umbles to forge a 23-2 advantage midway through the second quarter.

After Huntland tallied four straight points to cut the deficit to 23-6, Vanhooser knocked down a jumper and Dunkleman made a layup to give CMS a 27-6 lead at halftime before Vanhooser scored on an offensive put back early in the third quarter to make it 29-6.

The Hornets notched four of the next six points to narrow the gap to 31-10, but Cornersville responded with a 16-0 spurt behind seven points from McMahon and four points from Whitaker to open up a 47-10 cushion early in the fourth period.

Yarbrough then made a layup to trim the deficit to 47-12 before the Bulldogs outscored Huntland 6-0 the rest of the way with the help of four points from Dunkleman and a Crowell layup to cap their 53-12 triumph.