Riverfield Raiders finish fourth in state tournament

The Raiders of Riverfield Academy had an exciting basketball season this year.

The boys ended the regular season with a second place finish in district. They continued on to compete in MSAIS South State where they defeated Tallulah and Riverdale to earn a third place finish in South State and a bid to the MSAIS State Class A tournament.

On Febr. 17 the team traveled to Delta Academy to face Alpha Christian School. The Raiders jumped to an early 20-14 lead in the first quarter. By half-time the score was 37-24 in favor of the Raiders. The team maintained the lead and sealed a 62-58 victory over Alpha.

The Raiders were led in scoring by Logan Moore with 16, Taylor Long with 15, and Dakota Moss with 11.

The next opponent the Raiders would come to face was Tri-County. Riverfield beat Tri-County in an exciting game that was left tied at the end of regulation. The game went into overtime in which Kyle King scored 5 points for a game total of 17 to lead the Raiders to a thrilling win. Patrick Johnson scored 10 points in the win.

The Raiders moved on to face district rival Claiborne in the State Semi final game. The Raiders fell to the Rebels in the hard fought game by 10 points. The Raiders were led offensively by Kyle King with 16 and Logan Moore with 10. The Raiders finished the season with a fourth place finish in the state tournament and a record of 21-11 after a loss to Mt. Salus.

Others who contributed to the success of the Raiders are Drew Horne, Randall Crawford, Jeffrey Jeselink, Ryan Dupree, Chase Cater, Daniel Greer, and Logan Cantu. Logan Moore and Kyle King were named to both the MSAIS South State All-Tournament team and the MSAIS State All-Tournament team.

Taylor Long will be representing the Raiders at the MSAIS All-Star basketball game on March 6 at Mississippi College. The Raiders were coached by Cleo Head.