HCHS closes summer with victory at Whitley

By John Henson, Managing Editor

WILLIAMSBURG — A summer season that began for the Harlan County Black Bears looking like a potential disaster with their coach resigning and leading scorer transferring ended Tuesday at Whitley County with a much more positive outlook.
Harlan County closed the summer with a 16-6 record following a 70-58 win over Whitley County, a team that will likely be listed above the Black Bears when the preseason rankings are released in the fall.
Sophomore guard Maddox Huff concluded his strong summer with a 23-point performance to lead the Bears. Daniel Carmical added 18 points on six 3-pointers. Hunter Napier and Jaycee Carter chipped in with 11 and 10 points, respectively. Jonah Swanner added six. Brody Napier chipped in with two.
Whitley grabbed an early lead before Huff and Carter brought the Bears back to within two, at 30-28, by halftime. Huff and Hunter Napier took over in the second half as HCHS moved out to a double-digit lead. Carmical put the game away with five 3-pointers in the second half.
Down by one late in the junior varsity scrimmage, Whitley reeled off 11 straight points to post a 63-53 victory.
Freshman forward Terry Michael Delaney led the 9-9 Bears with 23 points. Brennan Blevins scored 15. Reggie Cottrell and Ethan Simpson added six and five points, respectively. Evan Simpson and Gage Peck scored two each.