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The CCHS Lady Raiders put on a dominant performance in a 77-16 rout of the Lady Lions and the Red Raiders ended a five-game winless drought with a 56-52 victory over Columbia on Friday night in Manchester.

CCHS Lady Raiders: 77, Columbia Lady Lions: 16

After opening 4A District 9 play with a win over Shelbyville on Tuesday night, the No. 2 Coffee County Lady Raiders were looking to go 2-0 in the district with a home win over Columbia.

The Lady Raiders dominated the first half, outscoring Columbia  24-6 in the first quarter, then exploding for 34 points in the second quarter to build a 48-point lead at the half, 58-10.

Coffee County’s bench unit would enter the game two minutes into the second half, and with a running clock the Lady Raiders outscored the Lady Lions 19-6 over the final two quarters to win 77-16.

With the victory, the Lady Raiders improve to 2-0 in district play and 20-0 overall.

Box Score: Columbia Central Lady Lions (16) Natasia Barner 6, Brooklyn Duke 6, Tristan Shaw 4.

No. 2 Coffee County Lady Raiders (77) Channah Gannon 18, Olivia Vinson 15, Natalie Barnes 13, Jules Ferrell 8, Morgen Spears 7, Ella Arnold 5, Audri Patton 4, Ava McIntosh 3, Reece Finch 2, Lily Matherne 2.

CCHS Red Raiders: 56, Columbia Lions: 52

Coming off of a heartbreaking overtime loss to Shelbyville on Tuesday night, the Red Raiders were eyeing their first district win of the season and an end to a five-game long winless skid.

Columbia would have the edge in the first quarter, outscoring the Red Raiders 13-12, but Coffee County would fight back in the second, outrunning the Lions 21-14 to take a 33-27 lead at the halftime break.

The Lions would try to draw closer, making it a 44-43 Coffee County lead at the end of the third, but the Red Raiders would regain control in the fourth to win 56-52.

“We had more patience on offense tonight,” said Coach Andrew Taylor. “That patience brought better shots, especially down the stretch. We spread the court, finished our cuts, got to the rim and made some easy baskets. Our guys handled the defensive pressure well tonight. It got to us at times, but for a majority of the game, we were calm.”

With their first district win of the season now in their pocket, the Red Raiders will turn their attention to a rivalry matchup at Warren County, arguably the loudest environment that Coffee County faced last season. If the Red Raiders want to leave McMinnville with a win like they did last year, Coach Taylor says that they will need to repeat their performance against Columbia.

“We just need to do the same thing we did tonight,” Taylor said. “You want to have a good start to keep their crowd out of it, but ultimately, we just have to continue to rebound, defend and take care of the ball. If we do those three things, then we’ll have a chance.”

Box Score: Columbia Central Lions (52) Isaiah Humes 14, Elijah Foster-Phillips 11, Brendan Secrest 10, Chase Tellington 7, Ronald Moore 4, RJ White 4, Nate Bellamy 2.

Coffee County Red Raiders (56) Courtland Farrar 18, Cayden Trail 7, Jaiden Warren 6, Luke Campbell 6, Brady Wright 6, Jayden Carter 6, David Lewis 3, MJ Rollman 2, Kaysen Lowery 2.

CCHS basketball will travel up Highway 55 to Warren County for their next game on Tuesday, Jan. 21 with varsity action starting at 6 p.m.