The early season success of the Jackson County Lady Panthers continued last week, as the team recorded wins against Oglethorpe, East Jackson and Habersham Central to improve their record to 5-1 overall.
They next have a region match up on their radars, as the Lady Panthers travel to Stephens County to face the Lady Indians Friday. Stephens County has won the last two pairings between the two teams, but Jackson County hopes to reverse that trend.
Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Jackson County started out last week on a strong note, recording a 50-12 decision over Oglethorpe County last Tuesday.
JCCHS coach Chad Pittman said the game gave all of his players time on the court.
“Our starters didn’t play too much,” he said. “It’s good to have some of those games so you get some of the younger kids time to play and get some experience.”
Victoria Fontana led the Lady Panthers in scoring with 12 points.
Up next was a trip to East Jackson to face the Lady Eagles. It was the first time the two teams had faced each other in over a season.
Jackson County took control of the game early, moving out to a 20-4 advantage by the end of the first quarter. The Lady Panthers were held to only five points in the second quarter, but the defense held
East Jackson to only 10 points, leaving Jackson County with a 25-14 advantage at the half.
After the half, the Lady Eagles put 14 points on their score, but the Lady Panthers cut through East Jackson’s defense to score 16, giving them a 41-28 lead at the end of the third quarter. Jackson County went on to win 49-36.
“Those are always great because it’s a rivalry,” Pittman said. “It’s hard to know what to expect in a rivalry many times because you’re playing with emotion. Sometimes it can be kind of nerve wracking because you don’t know exactly what you’re going to get out of everybody. But obviously it’s good for the kids, for the school and the community to win those kind of games.”
Ashley Skelton led the Lady Panthers in scoring with 21 points.
Sierra Roncadori and Danni Cunningham scored a combined 14 points, Roncadori with eight and Cunningham with 6, along with nine rebounds while sharing the same position on the court.
“I kind of challenged them at the first of the season,” Pittman said. “I asked them to combine for a double-double every night in that spot. I was real proud of both of them.”
The East Jackson win was also the 100th for Pittman as a coach.
“It’s not really about me, it’s about the kids and everybody supporting our program,” Pittman said. “I think for our school and our community, it’s something they can be proud of as well. I was real tickled that it happened against who it did. It made it more special, beating East and it being the 100th win.”
Up next was a Saturday trip to Habersham Central to face the Lady Raiders.
After getting off to a slow start, the Lady Panthers fought back to trail 27-21 at the end of the third quarter. With five minutes remaining in the game, Jackson County had closed the gap to 29-23.
Freshman Victoria Fontana came up with a big three-pointer to pull the score to within three, followed by a basket by Katie Rodriguez to make it a one point deficit.
Danni Cunningham scored on a rebound to put the Lady Panthers ahead.
The Lady Raiders got the ball back with about 45 seconds left, and scored. But a score from Jackson County’s Bree Drew gave the Lady Panthers the 33-31 win.
For more on this story, see Wednesday's edition of The Jackson Herald and The Braselton News.
