By JOSH FRYE
News Sportswriter
Escambia County High’s Blue Devils are still seeking their groove. The Blue Devils dropped to 1-3 on the season with a 55-43 loss to B.C. Rain last Thursday, November 21.
Three ECHS players hit double figures. Sheldon Williams, who scored 14 points, and Trevon Lambert (13) led the Blue Devils offense during the matchup. Allen Patterson added 10 points. Jacob Dinden added four points and Jalen Barnes scored two.
At the end of the first period, the Raiders held a 18-7 lead. Williams scored 7, Patterson and Williams scored 6 each, but the Blue Devils trailed 34-21 at the halfway mark.
ECHS outscored B.C. Rain 9-8 during the third period, but the Raiders held on during the fourth period to win.
With the loss, the Blue Devils fall to 1-3 with much more basketball left to be played.
“Despite the loss, I think the guys played pretty good,” ECHS head coach John Shears said. “We have to eliminate mistakes and turnovers and play our game.”
The Blue Devils JV team is also searching for answers after suffering a close loss against the JV Raiders prior to the varsity contest.
Kelvin Grimes and Kaiden Arnold led the Blue Devils with eight points each. Layton Frye added seven points, Jeremiah Clark had five and Maurice Etheridge had three. Marcus Benjamin, Xavion Gee and Brian Brown added two points each during the loss.
The Raiders held a 13-4 lead after one period and a 23-13 lead at the half.
During the third period, ECHS outshot the Raiders 17-8 but still fell behind 31-30 on the scoreboard at the end of the period.
During the fourth period, the Blue Devils outshot the Raiders 7-6, with points coming from Grimes, Arnold and Frye, but fell just shy on the scoreboard, losing to the Raiders, 38-37.
The Blue Devils will travel to face Flomaton High on Tuesday, December 3, at 4:30 p.m.