Castlewood, Coeburn Tied in Cumberland District; Blue Devils Defeat Blue Knights

COEBURN, Va. – Castlewood wasn’t about to relinquish its title without a fight.

The defending Cumberland District champion went on the road and took home with a 65-54 win over Coeburn.

That left the teams tied atop the district standings, each with one loss. The regular season concludes next week.

Coeburn appeared to be bothered by a tenacious Castlewood defense. The Blue Devils played a triangle-and-two to try to slow down the Blue Knights, Andrew Adkins and Andrew Pate.

“These guys have played great defense all season long,” Castlewood coach Wayne Rasnick said. “I’m real proud of what this team was able to achieve. This was a big win on the road, and I don’t think many people gave us a shot coming into the game.”

Adkins finished with 24 points and Phillip Riner added 16 points for Coeburn, but that was the bulk of the offense.

“Their defense took us out of the game,” Coeburn coach Jeff Adkins stated. “We just didn’t have the shooters stepping up and making the shots. It did frustrate us. You have to give
Castlewood credit, they came in here and stayed in the game.”

The game was tied five times and the lead changed hands six times in the first half, with Coeburn holding a 29-26 advantage at intermission. Riner and Adkins each hit a 3-pointer early in the third quarter as the Blue Knights started to pull away. But after struggling in the first half, Ruben Rasnick came alive. Rasnick had nine points the final three minutes of the quarter as Castlewood took a 44-39 lead.

“Rasnick did the same thing when we played them at Castlewood,” Adkins said. “He scored 22 points, most of them in the second half in the first game. Tonight, he got inside, made that shot and did what he had to do. He’s a big body and hard to match up with.”

Andrew Adkins hit three consecutive 3-pointers at the start of the fourth quarter to keep the Knights close. But the Castlewood defense was able to clamp down on him after Pate fouled out of the game early in the fourth quarter. The Devils began to pull away as they kept the ball in the hands of Ryan Meade.

Castlewood slowed down its offense, and Coeburn had to foul. Meade finished with 27 points and was 10-of-16 from the free-throw line.

Rasnick finished with 17 points and also had eight rebounds. Zach Bush added 10 points and had 11 rebounds and four steals for Castlewood.

Both teams close out the regular season next week. Coeburn will play host to Ervinton on Tuesday and close out CD play at Twin Springs on Wednesday. Castlewood has three district games remaining: at Thomas Walker on Tuesday and home against Rye Cove on Friday and Ervinton on Saturday.

GIRLS
Castlewood 72, Coeburn 68
Castlewood dodged a huge upset bid by Coeburn to remain atop the district standings.

Castlewood is 12-7 overall, 8-1 in the Cumberland District.

A very young Coeburn (9-8, 4-6) team led 63-62 after a basket by Natasha Burke with 2:17 left to play in the game. Kayla Gordon cut across the lane to score, starting a 10-5 Castlewood run to end the game.

“Coeburn played really well tonight,” Castlewood coach Barry Ruff said. “They are just so big and physical. Coeburn has all the weapons; they are a dangerous team to play.”

Kelsey Addington had a big game for Castlewood. In the final minutes of the game she dropped in a big 3-pointer, drew a charge and made a couple of critical free throws.

“Experience pays off,” Ruff said. “Addington is a four-year starter at point guard. That was what we needed out of her.

“We’re lucky to get away with a win. It was a tough game.”

Lorren Evans poured in a game-high 27 points to lead the Blue Devils and grabbed five rebounds. Gordon scored 16 points, and Addington added 11.

The Blue Knights got an outstanding effort from freshman Lindsay Lawson, who had a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds. She also had six steals. Samantha Perry contributed 17 points, and Alex Wyatt added 16.