Eagles halt Bulldogs run for State Championship
The Hearne Eagles halted the Marlin Bulldogs run for a State Championship on Monday night in Academy.
The Bulldogs traveled to Little River Academy to take on Hearne on Monday night in the State Semi-Finals. Marlin was defeated by Hearne, losing 58-48 to bring their amazing season to an end.
The Bulldogs struggled at the start of the game and trailed Hearne 5-0 early. Marlin got on the scoreboard with a layup by Aarik Smith-Shelley (12) for a 5-2 deficit. The Bulldogs fell behind 9-3, but broke the drought with a basket by Jaidan Womack (11) to make the score 9-5. The first quarter ended with Marlin trailing 13–9.
The first points of the second quarter for Marlin came on a layup by Roderick Suiters (1) to make the score 15-11. The Bulldogs stayed alive with a fastbreak layup by Keyshaun Massington (3) to make it a 20-16 deficit. Hearne answered with a 7-0 run to lead 27-16. Marlin continued to fight with a layup by Massington off a nice assist by Smith-Shelley to make the score 27-19. Marlin entered halftime trailing 29-20.
Marlin scored first in the third quarter with a layup by Jordan Womack (4) to make it a 29-22 deficit. The Bulldogs tightened the score with a three pointer by Smith-Shelley to trail 32-27. Marlin continued their surge with a layup by Jordan Womack to close the gap to 32-31, then Jordan Womack came through with another basket to take a 33-32 lead. Marlin used that momentum with a layup by Jaidan Womack to expand their lead to 37-34. The Eagles regained some momentum and the third quarter ended tied at 39.
Marlin scored the first points of the fourth quarter with a three pointer by Jaidan Womack to take a 41-39 lead, and they grew the margin to 46-39. Hearne clawed their way back and closed the gap to 46-44. The Bulldogs broke the drought with a layup by Jordan Womack to remain ahead 48-45. Sadly, Hearne finished the game on a 13-0 run to beat Marlin 58-48. With this loss, Marlin finishes their season with an overall record of 24-5 and a perfect district record of 12-0 and district champions along with being state semifinalists.
The Bulldogs traveled to Palestine on Tuesday, Feb. 18, to take on the Hawkins Hawks in the Regional Semi-Finals. Marlin defeated Hawkins 61-52. The Bulldogs took on the Shelbyville Dragons at Athens High School in the Regional Finals on Friday, Feb. 28. Marlin defeated the Dragons 60-54 in an overtime thriller to crown themselves regional champions.