By Ike House
The Cougars faced a tough opponent on Monday night, squaring off against the Holly Springs Hawks.  
The Lady Cougars fell short by a close margin in the first game and were brought down by their own hand. Both teams seemed to be firing on all cylinders in the first quarter. Big shots were falling from both sides.
Three pointers were falling from each end of the court. At the end of the quarter the Lady Hawks took the lead 12-10. The next quarter brought more of the same as both teams shot the ball with no consequence. The Lady Cougars scored 12 of their 16 points for the quarter from behind the arc. Four different Lady Cougars shot a three that helped they maintain a balance between the teams.
The Lady Hawks could not be stopped from going inside, getting to the paint and scoring baskets. The Lady Cougars went into the half having six different players score the ball but it was not enough. They went into the locker room down 28-24.
Coming out of the half both teams kept up the scoring pace with each team scoring over ten points. The game remained tight at 39-36 as the third quarter ended.
The game heated up in the final quarter. Both teams spent time at the free throw line, but with 2.8 seconds left on the clock it was the Lady Cougars who were sent to the line to shoot the go-ahead shots. With the game in the balance both shots missed and the Lady Cougars fell 49-48.
Leading the Lady Cougars was Kenya Edwards with 13 points, four steals, two rebounds and a block. Other scorers were QuiTonya Webster with 12 points and two steals. KiTyra Webb had seven points, four rebounds and three steals. Shan Clark had six points, two steals and a rebound. ShaQuanta Pettis had three points, two rebounds and a block. Jasmine Mays had three points while Denisha Montgomery had two points and a steal. LaErica Spann had two points, eight rebounds and a steal.
Boys’ game more conclusive
The Cougars did not have a good game against the Hawks last time and they waivered again. The Hawks came out and played up-tempo basketball in the first quarter, flustering the Cougars’ style of play. While the Cougars could only finish with 12 points for the quarter, the Hawks finished with 23 points.
In the next quarter the Cougars could not get back on track. They could not contain the Hawks’ offense. The Cougars kept up the tempo with the Hawks but they were only able to score 14 points which never dented the lead. The Hawks went into the half ahead,  47-26.
The Cougars came out of the locker room , slowed down even more and could not get the ball in the basket enough. They only scored nine points. The defense was frustrated with the tempo of the ball and could not focus sufficiently to get back in the game.
In the final quarter the Cougars scored a good amount of baskets, putting the ball in the hoop for 20 points. It was too little, too late. The Hawks had pulled away and there was not enough time to finish the task. The Cougars were defeated 71-55.
Leading the way for the Cougars was Jamarcus Jones with 19 points. Other scorers were Darrell Young with 15 points, Demetrick Moore with nine points, Mario Fenner Jr. with five points and Jarvis Renix and Demetrick Porter with two points each.