ELLENBORO — Ritchie County nearly erased a 21-point deficit here Friday night, but head coach Kenny Church’s squad came up just short and suffered a 75-67 Little Kanawha Conference setback to Williamstown.

The No. 10 Class AA ‘Jackets started hot and jumped out to a 23-8 cushion after one and were up 35-21 at the break.

Things continued to go the Yellowjackets’ way in the third as head man Scott Sauro’s program extended their advantage to 57-36.

However, the No. 5 Class A Rebels used their press to rally and managed to slice the deficit to four, 71-67, with 39 seconds remaining but couldn’t get any closer.

Ritchie County, which slipped to 4-2 and welcomes in Tyler Consolidated on Wednesday, received a game-high 20 points from Isaac Hodges. Jenner Keen (17) and Seth Cronin (14) also finished in double figures.

WHS was led by Caleb Atkinson’s 19 points, five rebounds and two blocks off the bench while Nate Nicely added 15 markers and Dom Strcula 11.

The ‘Jackets, who improved to 4-2 and connected on 9 of 18 from beyond the arc, also received nine points from Tyler Keiser, eight by Wyatt Powell along with five caroms from JP Strobl.

Williamstown returns to action next Friday with a road trip to defending double-A state champion Wheeling Central.

Doddridge County 71, St. Marys 30

WEST UNION — Doddridge County had no issues Friday night, breezing to a 71-30 triumph over visiting St. Marys.

DCHS (7-1) went ahead 17-8 after one and held leads of 36-18 at halftime and 55-23 going into the fourth.

Heston Hayes led the Bulldogs, who visit South Harrison Tuesday, with nine points. Landon Thomas, Will Adams and Jadon Solomon scored eight points apiece while Malachi Kelley added seven.

Rae Maston tallied a game-high 12 points for the Blue Devils, who dropped to 1-6 and play host to Magnolia Wednesday. Chan Wilkinson chipped in 10 points.

Gilmer County 64, Calhoun County 45

GLENVILLE — Gilmer County jumped out to a 20-9 lead after one against visiting Calhoun County Friday and cruised from there, claiming a 64-45 victory.

The Titans (2-5) led 31-22 at halftime and 50-36 after three. Kolten Holbert led all scorers with 21 points. Remi Huffman added 15 points for Gilmer, which visits Clay County next Friday, while Jacob Mick chipped in 14 and Tyler Ratliff contributed eight.

Chase Schoolcraft paced Calhoun (2-6) with 12 points. Sawyer Groves added nine for the Red Devils, who visit Richwood Tuesday, while Cooper Morris tallied eight.

Ripley 53, Herbert Hoover 37

ELKVIEW — Clinging to a 20-19 lead at halftime, Ripley poured it on in the third quarter, outscoring host Herbert Hoover 20-6 en route to a 53-37 victory Friday.

Parker Smith double-doubled with 15 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Vikings (5-2). Brady McVay added 14 points and three steals while Matthew Stellato added 13 points.

Ripley returns home Tuesday when it plays host to Point Pleasant.

The Huskies (3-4) were paced by Sam Kee, who finished with 12 points, seven boards and three assists.

Magnolia 54, Bridgeport (Ohio) 51

NEW MARTINSVILLE — Magnolia rallied from a 29-24 halftime deficit to defeat Bridgeport (Ohio) 54-51 Friday, handing the Bulldogs their first loss of the season.

The Blue Eagles evened their record at 3-3. They outscored BHS 11-9 in the third to get within three with eight minutes to play. Magnolia won the final period 19-13 to claim the victory.

Kingston Christen and Noah Hood accounted for the bulk of the scoring for the Blue Eagles. Christen tallied a game-high 22 while Hood finished with 20.

For Bridgeport (7-1), Jaleel Vincent led the way with 18. Evan Clark added 14 while Jameel McKennen netted eight.