LAURINBURG — The Spring Hill Middle School boys and girls basketball teams fell to Sandy Grove on Thursday night. Both games were closely contested, but the Panthers of Sandy Grove found a way to head back to Hoke County with a pair of wins.
Lady Panthers hold off comeback attempt
In the girls basketball game, Sandy Grove won 35-30 after Spring Hill tried to rally in the game’s final minutes.
Spring Hill cut Sandy Grove’s lead to 33-26 on a free throw by Nyasia McQueen with just under two minutes left in the game. McQueen was fouled again after rebounding her second attempt, and she went back to the line. McQueen made one of two attempts to cut Sandy Grove’s lead to 33-27.
Spring Hill then forced a turnover with 1:28 on the clock, but the Lady Scots couldn’t take advantage of the opportunity to put another dent in their deficit. Sandy Grove then increased its lead to 35-27 with a second-chance basket.
McQueen returned to the free throw line and made one attempt with 20 seconds remaining in the game. That cut Sandy Grove’s lead to 35-28. After an unsuccessful Sandy Grove possession, McQueen scored the final basket of the game with four seconds left.
Madysan Hammond scored 11 points for Spring Hill. McQueen added 10 points. Kayla Simmons had nine points, and Tina Martinez scored two points for the Lady Spartans.
Spring Hill’s overall record is now 1-4.
Sandy Grove boys prevail in final minutes
The Sandy Grove boys basketball team clawed back from a 17-9 halftime deficit to defeat Spring Hill 28-26.
Darrius McDougald led the Spartans with seven points. Jonathan Graham added six points. Kaseem McLeod scored five points and Ji’San McPhatter had four points.
After trimming away Spring Hill’s lead for most of the second half, Sandy Grove took a 28-26 lead on a layup with 15 seconds left in the game. Spring Hill had a chance to tie it when McLeod headed to the free throw line for two shots with seven seconds left, but the attempts were unsuccessful, and the Panthers held on for the victory.
Spring Hill outscored Sandy Grove 8-0 in the second quarter, but the Panthers flipped the script and held a 10-3 advantage in the third quarter.
Next up
The Spartans will visit Ellerbe on Tuesday. The games will start at 4 p.m.
