Harrells varsity teams earn sweep

The Harrells Crusaders hosted the Liberty Christian Heat on Thursday evening and the home varsity teams swept the visitors, each squad taking eight-point wins. For the boys, it kept the undefeated record intact.

Girls

The Lady Crusaders (1-1) took on the Liberty Lady Heat (0-1) on Thursday, coming away with an eight-point win.

The first half was incredibly low scoring, entering halftime only 22 points had been scored between both team, 18-4. Liberty put up the first points in the third and began a scoring spree that wasn’t present in the first half. They put up five points in a matter of minutes while the Lady Crusaders struggled to regain their poise. Momentum shifted when Georgia Pope hit a three to put them on top, 21-9.

Lady Heat made little head way in their deficit in the second half. Harrells had the win well in hand and put in the second string for some reps on the court. Liberty picked up the pace in the final minutes of the game, and was making strides to maybe catch up. However, the Lady Crusaders stood their ground and shut down the Heat with the final score, 34-26.

Harrells (2-1) was on the court on Friday, Dec. 2, looking to add to their pair victories thus far. They were to take on the Thales Academy Apex (3-3).

Boys

The undefeated Harrells squad kept the unblemished record intact on Thursday with a 60-52 win, improving to 4-0 on the season.

Harrells came into the game with high energy. The Crusaders shutdown the Heat in the first quarter as they put up six in the first couple minutes into the quarter. The Heat however, weren’t giving up that easily.

Fouls were bountiful on the Crusaders’ side as they gave up six points to the Heat. Liberty pressed hard up the court and were rewarded as Harrells lead dwindled to three after a commanding first quarter. The Heat continued to press and brought the lead to one. After a couple of close calls, Harrells secured their tenuous lead when B.J. Bennett drained a three from the top of the key to put them up by four, 28-24. Liberty would only score two more points in the last seconds of the first half as Harrells grew their lead back to six. The Crusaders went into halftime leading, 32-26.

After the break, Harrells lead was cut in half as Liberty found their groove. The Crusaders struggled with possession and found themselves sprinting to their side more than they’d want. Harrells held their lead however as Liberty’s offense had run out of steam. The court erupted with Harrells re-establishing their dominance over the Heat with a sound dunk from Deshaun McKoy. The points hadn’t even made it to the board before Liberty called for a timeout, 39-31.

The Heat held steady and the timeout proved fruitful as Harrells wasn’t in the clear just yet. Liberty continued to press the Crusaders and made some smart plays to keep them on their toes. The quarter ended with Harrells holding strong leading by six, 45-39.

Liberty didn’t back down in the fourth, the lead remained within reach the rest of the game. Despite another big dunk from the Crusaders, the Heat remained poised and continued to chip away at Harrells lead. The Crusaders were able to stave off the Heat and slam the door on this game, 60-52.

Harrells Crusaders tout a 4-0 record to begin the season, and were to travel to Thales Academy to compete against the Titans on Friday, Dec. 2, at 6:30 p.m.

JV

The Junior Crusaders (2-2) came into the game heaving a devestating loss against Faith Christian on Tuesday. They competed against Liberty Junior Heat on Thursday Dec. 1 hoping for a win. Unfortunately for the Crusaders, Liberty were firing on all cylinders and defeated the Harrells, 47-25. They will return to the home court on Tuesday, Dec. 6, to face off against Wilmington Christian Academy (1-2) at 4 p.m..