After a hot start to the season, the Joaquin Rams have struggled since the Christmas break, dropping five of their last six. The Rams latest two setbacks have been the biggest, falling in District 20-2A encounters against Jefferson and Harleton.
The Rams fell to Jefferson at home on Friday night, 81-52, and Harleton on the road Tuesday, 48-32, to drop back to 0-2 in league action, 15-8 on the season.
In other District 20-2A games last Friday, Waskom knocked off Harleton, 63-35, and Tatum cruised past Elysian Fields, 83-22. In games on Tuesday, Tatum routed Jefferson, 84-46, and Waskom bumped off Elysian Fields, 79-36.
Tatum and Waskom lead the early district race with identical 2-0 District 20-2A marks, with Jefferson and Harleton one game back at 1-1. Joaquin and Elysian Fields are both tied at 0-2 in the league.
In contests scheduled for Friday night, the Rams are set to host Elysian Fields, Harleton will visit Tatum and Waskom will host Tatum in a battle of the league's front-runners.
Jefferson 81, Joaquin 52 -- Wyatt Hairgrove led the Rams' attack, hitting 11-of-24 field goals for 25 points, but the Rams came out short in a fast-paced 81-52 setback at the hands of Jefferson in Ram Gymnasium.
Za Cooper and Will Vaughn each added seven points apiece for the Rams, while Tra Rogers chipped in five, P.J. Peterson and Tristan Hairgrove added three each and Cody Runnels scored two points.
As a team, Joaquin hit 21-of-60 (35%) from the field, but only 3-of-12 (25%) from the free throw line.
Vaughn led the Rams in the rebounding department, pulling down five, with Rogers adding four and Hayden Ferguson and Tristan Hairgrove chipping in two each.
Wyatt Hairgrove totaled three steals, with Kain Yates leading the Rams in assists with two.
Jefferson led 16-10 at the end of the opening period, but widened the gap to 36-20 at the break by outscoring the Rams 20-10 in the second period. The Bulldogs then put the game on ice in the third by outscoring Joaquin 23-11 to lead 59-31 heading into the fourth quarter.
Harleton 48, Joaquin 32 -- Joaquin couldn't overcome 28% (15-of-53) shooting from the field on Tuesday night in a 48-32 loss on the road.
Only one Ram player scored in double figures, with Wyatt Hairgrove scoring 10 points. Peterson added eight points to the cause, with Rogers, Cooper and Vaughn each chipping in four and Tristan Hairgrove scored two points.
Vaughn was the leading rebounder for the Rams with eight, while Peterson added five and Rogers pulled down three.
Runnels and Wyatt Hairgrove each blocked a pair of shots, Vaughn had three steals and Hairgrove two for the Rams, while Rogers dished out four assists.