Jackson County’s girls are off to a respectable 4-3 start but are searching for a little more consistency as subregion play nears.
The Lady Panthers beat Stephens County 50-42 but still haven’t produced the complete performance coach John Hawley is looking for.
Jackson County — which opens Region 8-AA South play at home Friday — started cold and finished cold Tuesday, but did play well in the middle of the contest to move above the .500 mark. The Panthers outscored the Lady Indians 36-19 in the second and third quarters.
“We started out really flat but on a positive note, we put it together in the second and third quarter,” Hawley said.
Ashley Skelton led Jackson County yet again with 18 points while Emily Elrod had 15 points and six assists.
Danni Cunningham had a huge night on the boards grabbing 14 rebounds. She scored six points.
Jackson County led 39-27 at the end of three quarters but allowed Stephens County to remain within striking distance in the fourth quarter.
“I felt like in the fourth quarter we allowed too many second chances, and we let them back in the game,” Hawley said.
The Lady Panthers split their games over the weekend, beating Banks County 42-29 Saturday after losing to Fannin County 58-38 Friday.
Jackson County experienced third-quarter lulls in both its contests over the weekend. The Lady Panthers were limited to just three points in the third quarter in their victory over Banks County and were outscored 21-2 in the loss to Fannin County in what coach John Hawley called “a horrendous third quarter.”
“We’ve got to learn how to come out of the locker room with more intensity,” Hawley said.
Skelton paced Jackson County in the Saturday win over Banks County with 12 points, followed by Emily Elrod (eight) and Breanna Drew (seven).
Hawley said his team showed some promise offensively in the first half, but “we kind of dug ourselves in a hole there again in the third quarter.” Though the Lady Panthers were limited to just three points in the third quarter, Jackson County put the clamps down defensively on the Lady Leopards, allowing just two points in the period.
In the loss to Fannin County, Skelton led the Lady Panthers with 17 points, while Bree Drew added nine. Hawley said Jackson County “got good minutes off the bench” from Katie Phillips.
The Lady Panthers trailed just 22-20 at the half to the Lady Rebels, who advanced to the Sweet 16 last year, before getting overwhelmed in the third quarter.
Hawley said both third-quarter lulls show that Jackson County must step up its game offensively.
“We’re still struggling offensively … being active and getting second chance opportunities,” Hawley said.
