It’s been a long season for first-year head coach Martha Jane McMasters and the Lady Bulldogs, mired in last place in the District 8-A standings, but on Friday versus Eagleville they showed the grit and determination that bodes well for the future.

“I was proud of our girls in the first half,” McMasters said. “In the second half they changed their defense to a 2-2-1 and we could not get past it, we run the 2-2-1 and we still couldn’t get past it.”

Cornersville fell behind 7-0 early and didn’t score until the 4:03 mark of the first quarter when freshman Alicia Polk hit two free throws.

Eagleville’s Makayla Moates, who led all scorers in the game with 25 points, scored before the lone Cornersville senior Payton Salsman nailed a 3-pointer to make it a 9-5 contest.

The Lady Eagles turned up the heat and scored six straight to open up a 15-5 lead before Abbie Woodard hit one free throw at the end of the first quarter.

Eagleville opened the second period with five straight points and went on to lead by 13 points at 24-11 midway through the stanza.

Cornersville dug in, putting together a 6-1 run with four points coming on a pair of baskets by Polk and two free throws from freshman Grayson Riner to get within striking distance at 25-17 at the end of the first half.

Eagleville came out on fire in the second half, going on a backbreaking 12-0 run to begin the third quarter, opening up a 20-point lead.

“That killed us, right then and there” McMasters said. “We were in the ballgame and we had four or five turnovers in a row and it was done.”

Salsman nailed her second 3-pointer of the game to stop the skid, but Moates was too much to handle as she scored 15 points in the third period and the Lady Eagles led 48-21 at the end of the stanza.

Moates ended up with three 3-pointers and Mary Elise Lynch had two for the Lady Eagles.

The Lady Eagles scored nine points in the fourth quarter and the Lady Bulldogs netted five for the 57-26 final.

Polk led the Lady Bulldogs in the scoring column with 13 points, Salsman had eight, Riner netted two, and Woodard, CJ Thompson, and Annabelle Mulliniks all had one marker.

“We are trying to get better every ballgame,” McMasters said. “The year in general has not been what we wanted, but we have gotten better throughout the season.”

“My one senior Payton Salsman and my two juniors have really done a good job of keeping everybody upbeat and all these girls show up every day and work really hard.”

The Lady Bulldogs play the third seed in the District 8-A Tournament next week at Huntland.

The top two seeds get byes.

Cornersville lost its final district game at home Tuesday night when they fell to Moore County, 45-35.

Eagleville 15 10 23 9-57

Cornersville 6 11 4 5-26

Eagleville (57): Makayla Moates 25, Anna Grace Clement 9, Mary Elise Lynch 8, Lizzy Thompson 8, Hannah Hailey 2, Eliza McClaran 2, Mallory Spielman 2, Haylee Ferguson 1.

Three-Point Goals (5): Moates 3, Lynch 2.

Free Throws (10-for-14): Clements 7-for-10, Thompson 2-for-2, Ferguson 1-for-2.

Cornersville (26): Alicia Polk 13, Payton Salsman 8, Grayson Riner 2, Abbie Woodard 1, CJ Thompson 1, Annabelle Mulliniks 1.

Three-Point Goals (2): Salsman 2.

Free Throws (12-for-20): Polk 5-for-6, Woodard 1-for-6, Salsman 2-for-2, Riner 2-for-2, Mulliniks 1-for-2, Thompson 1-for-2.

Halftime Score: Eagleville 25, Cornersville 17.

District 8-A Standings

Huntland 20-7, 10-0

Eagleville 12-14, 6-4

Moore County 17-11, 6-4

Cascade 5-20, 4-6

Fayetteville 12-12, 4-6

Cornersville 3-21, 0-10