By By ROBERT BLANKENSHIP
Advance Managing Editor
The Escambia County Blue Devils earned an area victory over Robertsdale, 52-46, on Friday and then dropped their first contest of the season on Saturday to Clarke County, 64-47.
ECHS made quick work of the Golden Bears on Friday night as they led throughout the contest. But, turnovers toward the end of the game helped Robertsdale get back in the game.
The Devils dominated Robertsdale early in the game as they jumped out to a 15-5 lead by the end of the first period. They held on to an 11 point lead at halftime, 26-15.
The Bears began to creep up on Devils through the second half as they outscored ECHS 31-26 through the final two periods. Robertsdale tightened up on defense through the final minutes of play to help them get back in the game. But, the lead proved to be too much for the Bears to overcome as the game ended with the Devils leading by six, 52-46.
Leading scorers for the Devils were Ricky Craft with 16, Barrett Finney with 10 and Damien Robinson scored nine points.
The win was the fifth of the season for ECHS and their second area victory. Head coach Bob Zarahn said he was pleased with how the team performed overall, but said the turnovers were something that the Devils will have to improve upon.
On Saturday, the Devils got their first taste of defeat as they fell to Clarke County, 64-47. The first half of the game was close as ECHS fell behind 20-15 by the end of the first period and then by only four, 29-25, at the half. But, Clarke County outscored the Devils in the final two periods to secure the victory.
Robinson led the Devils in scoring with 17 points, Craft chipped in 11 points and Finney scored eight points and led the team in rebounding with 11.
Zarahn said the Clarke County defense played very well and that his squad took too many bad shots.
ECHS shot 43 percent from the field while Clarke went 57 percent, by far the highest percentage allowed by ECHS' defense this season. The loss gives ECHS an overall record of 5-1. The win over Robertsdale improved their area record to 2-0. Citronelle will be travelling to Atmore on Friday to take on the Blue Devils. On the original schedule, this was an away game for ECHS.