Sports
Saltzman, Cozart Lead Athens Over River Valley
By: Megan Vanselow, Tony Heim
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The Athens Bulldogs (10-7) picked up their second-straight win and found their groove through Zacciah Saltzman and Dalton Cozart after the team lost Griffin Lutz a week ago. The Bulldogs passed River Valley (3-15) 57-41.
At the final buzzer, River Valley tallied 58 missed shots, while Athens shot 54 total on the night. The Raiders shot 12 for 70 from the field, but hit over 50 percent at the free throw line.
Saltzman and Cozart controlled the offense and tempo the entire game, keeping the Bulldogs in check. Cozart found confidence on the court and finished with 16 points and two rebounds. Saltzman contributed 15 points and six rebounds.
Head coach Jeff Skinner mentioned how impressed he was with the leadership shown on and off the court from Saltzman and Cozart in the Bulldogs past few games.
The Athens defense allowed it to break away with the score, despite River Valley failing to convert 83 percent of its shots. The game was close in the early minutes, but the pressures from the Bulldogs were too much for the Raiders to handle.
The fourth quarter saw River Valley pick up more points than it had in the rest of the game combined. Playing against an Athens bench, the Raiders scored 23 points to finish the night, finally connecting shots.
Athens travels to Parkersburg to makeup a matchup on Feb. 4. River Valley bounces back tomorrow, with a home game against Wellston.