Cole Pride selected as a Player of the week

Each week, one boy and one girl are selected asthe IBCA/Franciscan Health player of the week from each of the three districts. Of those six players Batesville senior Cole Pride was selected as the district three boys player of the week.

Pride helped the Bulldogs to a pair of wins last week, leading to the Ripley County tournament title.

Wednesday, the Bulldogs defeated Jac-Cen-Del at South Ripley, 64-42. Pride was an impressive 12-14 from the field, 5-7 from deep, and 2-2 from the free throw line, scoring a whopping 31-points in the victory. He also contributed eight rebounds, two steals, and three blocked shots, providing some frontline defense for Batesville.

Saturday, the Bulldogs finished their week at host South Ripley in the county championship game, and Pride was once again instrumental in the narrow, 67-64 title game win. The 6-8 post scored 18-points on 7-12 shooting, plus he was 4-6 from the charity stripe, and he posted a double-double with his 18 rebounds. Toss in three assists, a pair of steals, and three blocked shots, and he again helped in many facets of the game.

Through 11 Games Pride is averaging 17.8 ppg, 9.0 rebounds, and 3.2 blocks per game. The Bulldogs are off to their best start since the 2013-14 season when they finished 18-4.