Jefferson produced one of its best finishes of the year to net a crucial subregion win.
The Lady Dragons (8-5, 2-1) rallied from a 13-point third-quarter deficit to beat Hart County 47-43 Tuesday at home in a big Region 8-AA pairing.
“It was a good win for our kids,” coach Jason Gibson said. “We played very sluggish for the first three quarters ... We challenged them a little bit at the (fourth) quarter break.”
The Lady Dragons had three players reach double figures — Skylar Evanson (11 points), Kellie Goza (11) and Rachel Goza (11) — in the win as they moved to 2-1 in subregion play.
Jefferson now faces Oglethorpe County Friday, non-region rival Commerce Saturday and Elbert County Tuesday. Against Oglethorpe County and Elbert County, the Lady Dragons have an opportunity to add to their subregion win total. Jefferson is tied for first in 8-AA South.
“Our kids have really worked hard to get in that position and we have to work hard to stay in that position,” Gibson said.
In Tuesday’s game, Hart County hit two big three-pointers in the third quarter to help stretch its lead to 30-17. It then led 35-24 heading into the final period.
But Jefferson got its second wind late.
Bailey Boyd, who finished with eight points, scored back-to-back buckets to start the fourth quarter to spark a game-changing 17-3 run. Evanson capped that run by converting a three-point play — hitting a lay-up and then adding a free throw — to put the Lady Dragons up 43-38 with 3:06 left in the game.
Rachel Goza added a lay-in with 54 seconds left which gave Jefferson a 45-42 lead, and Hart County proceeded to hit just 1-of-4 free throws in the final minute.
Jefferson clinched the victory by forcing a miss on an errant three-point attempt from Hart County with nine seconds left and then getting a free throw from Rachel Goza with seven seconds left, giving Jefferson at two-possession lead.
Kellie Goza played a big role in Tuesday’s rally, scoring nine of her 11 points in the second half.
She gave the Lady Dragons their first lead of the second half with a basket with 4:28, putting Jefferson up 36-35 momentarily. The freshman added another big basket moments later, tying the contest at 38. Jefferson wouldn’t trail again the rest of the way.
“Kellie Goza did an excellent job of setting the tone,” Gibson said. “At the end of the third quarter and all of the fourth quarter, she made some big plays.”
Meanwhile, Evanson had an impressive all-around game. In addition to her 11 points — which included going 6-of-7 at the free throw line — she had nine steals.
“She just did great,” Gibson said.
