On the heels of its thrilling win over A.L. Johnson, Ellwood Christian lacked the same energy in a rematch against R.C. Hatch.

The Ellwood Christian Eagles (2-3) fell to the R.C. Hatch Bobcats (2-3) in a 71-43 blowout Saturday at Ellwood. Eagles head coach Darrell Walker said his team was affected by its narrow victory over A.L. Johnson the night before.

“We were mentally tired. They came out with no energy. They came out with a slow start and also turned the ball over a lot, so you have all those adding up against you, there’s no way you can win,” Walker said. Rayshawn Simmons scored the first point of the game for the Eagles, but it was the Bobcats who got out to the strong start. Ellwood trailed 19-9 at the end of the first quarter.

“They played really well together,” said R.C. Hatch head coach Homer Davis. “They didn’t make a lot of unnecessary fouls.”

The Eagles couldn’t recover in the second quarter. Ellwood trailed 35-21 at halftime.

A Ja’Mel Phillips layup was followed by an Anthony Woods layup midway through the third quarter to try to bring Ellwood back, but the Eagles only managed 10 third quarter points.

Trailing 65-33 at the end of the third quarter, the fourth quarter was only a formality.

“We played against a great program, a program we’re trying to model ourselves around and we just hit a brick wall tonight,” Walker said.

 

R.C. Hatch 56, 

Ellwood 27 girls)

Early on in the game against R.C. Hatch, it looked as though Ellwood had finally turned a corner.

The second half got away from the Eagles once again, leaving Ellwood still searching for its first win.

Despite starting the game strong, Ellwood (0-5) lost to R.C. Hatch (2-3) 56-27 Saturday at Ellwood. Eagles’ head coach James Spears said his team was much improved from its first game against R.C. Hatch, but the Eagles still have a long way to go.

“They’ve got to figure out a way to learn how to win,” Spears said.

Ellwood was tied 6-6 with R.C. Hatch after one quarter, thanks to a 3-pointer from Shakeria White.

White, Brianna Dower and Arianna Withers each scored a two-point shot in the second quarter, as Ellwood only trailed 20-15 at halftime.

Monique Jones scored four points for the Eagles in the third quarter, but she was the only player to score a field goal for Ellwood that quarter.

Ellwood allowed 16 third-quarter points, however, and trailed 36-22 with one quarter to play.

“They came out in the first half like they really wanted to play, and I thought the first half they played pretty good,” Spears said. “The second half they just gave up.”

White was the lone scorer for the Eagles in the fourth quarter, as she knocked down a 3-pointer and two free throws.