Apple Springs heads to postseason

Groveton’s Daiton Chandler pushes his way through the Grapeland defense. Photo Tony Farkas

TCNS staff

A win over county rival Centerville put the Eagles into the playoffs, but a loss on Friday to Martinsville means Apple Springs remains in fourth place in district.

Head Coach Jeffrey Browning said they had a good win against Centerville, 59-43, on Feb. 6.

He said since it was senior night, the seniors played the majority of the game, and all of them contributed to the win.

Top scorers were Dakota Campbell with 24 points and Andrew Pion with 10. Connor Kaufman pulled down 11 rebounds.

For Centerville, Aydn Self poured in 30 points, followed by Kyleigh Eddins with 8.

However, Browning said Apple Springs ran into a buzzsaw with Martinsville on Friday, losing 75-45.

“No matter what we did, we just couldn’t slow them down,” he said.

Campbell again was the hot hand for the Eagles, adding 18 points to his total, which now has crested 1,500 points.

With the win against Centerville, and a Neches loss to Slocum, Apple Springs clinched a playoff spot; the loss to Martinsville means the team can no longer move up in the standings.

We will face Brookeland in the playoffs on Feb. 20.

On Friday, the Centerville Bulldogs lost to Slocum 71-35.

Groveton

The Indians put up a tough offense, but ultimately fell short against Grapeland on Friday, losing to Grapeland 77-62.

Groveton was slow to start in the first half, and while they made a charge at it in the second half, the Indians came up short.

Billy Thomas poured in 18 points in the game, and Daiton Chandler had the hot hand with 22 points, which includes two 3-pointers.

On Feb. 6, the Indians lost to Latexo 51-31.

Trinity

The Tigers posted two losses last week — a 59-49 loss to Coldspring on Feb. 6 and a 52-44 loss to Crockett on Friday.

Against Coldspring, it was a close first half as Trinty had the lead 28-26, and while Trinity had a 4-point lead at the end of the fourth, the Trojans found another gear quarter and took control of the game.

Coldspring posted 15 points to Trinity’s 9, which was the deciding factor of the game.

Top scorer for Trinity included Ayden Debose with 13.

Girls

Groveton

The Lady Indians closed district with a 43-30 win over Latexo.

Leading scorers were Kayleigh Albus with 13, Kiki Smith with 12, Stormie Hensley with 9, and Emma Alexander with 7.

This was also senior night and Kiki Smith, Stormie Hensley, Emma Alexander, Daisia Leonard and Megan Hannah were honored.

Trinity

The Trinity Lady Tigers suffered a 49-28 loss to Coldspring on Feb. 6.

The first quarter set the tempo for the game, with Coldspring ringing out 25 points in the first quarter to Trinity’s 6. The Lady Tigers only managed double-digit scoring in the second quarter.