After making it two games into the post season, the Lady Panthers of Jackson County saw their season come to an end with a loss to Franklin County.
The Lady Panthers went 14-13 overall in the season, their best showing since 2005-06, when they went 13-14 overall.
Mountain View
The Lady Panthers opened up post season play by hosting the Mountain View Lady Bears last Wednesday.
Jackson County took control early, moving out to a 24-14 lead by the end of the first quarter. The Lady Panthers broke the game wide open in the second quarter, holding Mountain View scoreless while adding 13 points to their total to carry a 37-14 lead into the half.
The Lady Panthers continued to control the game in the second half, allowing the Lady Bears only four points in the third quarter while they added another 10 to their tally to lead 47-18 at the end of the third. Jackson County was able to move pretty easily through the fourth quarter, adding another six points to their total to take a 53-27 victory.
Victoria Fontana led the Lady Panthers in scoring with 15 points. Ashley Skelton scored 11.
“The second quarter was probably the best defensive quarter we’ve had all year,” said coach Chad Pittman. “We came out really focused and executed very well. It was just a really good night. Everybody contributed something offensively and defensively. It was a good team effort.”
Franklin County
The next night, the Lady Panthers played host to Franklin County, a team that they had come close to defeating in the final game of the regular season.
The Lady Lions moved out to an early lead, while Jackson County worked to stay within striking distance. By the end of the first quarter, Franklin County led 10-4. The Lady Lions broke the game wide open in the second quarter, holding Jackson County to only two points while they scored 17 to make it 27-6 at the half.
From there, the Lady Panthers tried to hang on and close the gap, but to no avail. Franklin County went on to win 48-25.
For more on this story, see Wednesday's edition of The Jackson Herald or The Braselton News.
