Tigers drop two area games on the road

For the Enquirer

The Hartselle Tigers battled through two difficult road games in area play last week, dropping both games losing to Athens and Muscle Shoals.

Muscle Shoals 65, Hartselle 59

The Tigers fell to 9-12 overall and 2-2 in area play following their 65-59 loss on the road at Muscles Shoals. In the loss, Ty Odom scored his 1,000th career point by hitting a foul shot in the second half of the loss.

Hartselle outscored Muscle Shoals 19-14 in the first quarter. The Trojans tied the game at 34-34 heading into halftime after taking the second quarter 20-15.

Muscle Shoals took a 49-48 lead into the fourth quarter and then outscored Hartselle 16-11 in the fourth to get the six-point victory.

Rhett Boyd finished with a career-high 18 points to lead the Tigers. Odom added 17 points and four rebounds, while Carter Sheas added 10 points and three assists.

Athens 54, Hartselle 41

Hartselle dropped their first area game of the season with a 54-41 loss on the road at Athens. The Golden Eagles jumped out to a 19-8 lead after the first quarter. The Tigers outscored Athens 7-6 in the second but trailed 25-15 at halftime.

The Tigers cut the Golden Eagles’ lead to two points late in the third before Athens rallied to lead 36-33 heading into the fourth quarter. The Golden Eagles pulled away for the victory in the fourth, outscoring Hartselle 18-8.

Odom finished with 14 points and five rebounds to lead Hartselle. Gray Bennich added 10 points and four rebounds, while Reed Springer had six points and six rebounds.