With the 13th Region All “A” Classic looming, the Pineville Mountain Lions are finding their stride in hopes of a tournament run at Red Bird over the next few days.
The Lions improved to 9-4 with a 71-33 victory over the Thomas Walker (VA) Pioneers Thursday night in the Gem City.
The Mountain Lions outscored the Pioneers 49-23 in the first half and blew the game open in the third stanza, outscoring TW 16-4 to break the game open.
The Pineville high-scoring duo of guards Sawyer Thompson and Ashton Moser tossed in 19 points each to lead the Lions’ attack. Moser also joined the 1,000 Point Club at PHS with his effort. Senior center Sam Caldwell continued his strong play with 15 points in the winning effort.
Center Tanner Epperly led the Pioneers with nine points. Forward Hunter Collins added eight.
The run to a Class A regional crown for Pineville begins in earnest Saturday afternoon against another regional Class A favorite in Jackson County. The game is the tournament’s opener at noon between the Lions and the Generals. The winner of the matchup will play the winner of the Harlan/ Red Bird game Monday night in the semifinals.
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Thomas Walker (Va.) (33) — Nick Kimberlin 2, Landon Lowe 4, Blake Will 2, Ellis Hoskins 4, Andrew Bigge 2, Gael Querol 2, Tanner Epperly 9, Hunter Collins 8.
Pineville (71) — Sawyer Thompson 19, Ashton Moser 19, Kaiden Robbins 2, Anderson Gentry 6, Zander Garrison 3, Logunn Littles 5, Preston Zachery 2, Sam Caldwell 15.

Thomas Walker 10 13 4 6 —  33
Pineville 21 28 16 6 — 71