It was not the week the East Jackson Lady Eagles had hoped for, as they dropped a game to Stephens County last Tuesday, then lost to Oconee County on Friday.
Next up for the 1-4 Lady Eagles is a home stand against the Lady Tigers of Commerce tonight (Wednesday). Commerce enters the match-up 1-1 on the season, fresh off a victory over Tallulah Falls Friday night.
Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m.
Things didn’t start off well for the Lady Eagles last Tuesday, as they found themselves on the losing end of a big 63-19 score against the Lady Indians of Stephens County.
East Jackson was hoping for better luck on Friday, when they played host to Oconee County’s Lady Warriors. Oconee County had won the last pairing of the two teams, which occurred in December of 2007, and the Lady Eagles wanted to even the score.
At first, it looked like that might happen, as East Jackson moved out to a 21-13 lead by the end of the first quarter. But Oconee County began to rally back, and tied the score 29-29 going into the half.
The game continued to go back and forth, but by the end of the third quarter, the Lady Warriors held a slim three-point lead, 38-35. The Lady Eagles worked to get the lead back, but by the end, Oconee gave themselves a little breathing room, and came away with a 54-48 victory.
Autumn Wilbanks led East Jackson in scoring with 15 points, while Caroline Hicks scored 13 and Dynelle Todman scored 11. Hicks had seven rebounds on the night, while Todman and Callie Moore both had five. Terin Gillespie and Moore both recorded three assists, while Moore had three steals against the Lady Warriors.
“We had Oconee right were we wanted them at the beginning of the game,” said coach Amy Larimer. “The girls were executing both offensively and defensively. We became complacent and allowed them back into the game.
“We started playing at their tempo and were not giving it our all the majority of the game.”
Larimer said her team is continuing to build on their experience early in the season.
“We are in the learning process of playing an entire game and actually closing out some big games such as Oconee,” she said. “Once we get to that point we will begin to flourish.”
The Lady Eagles will play host to Washington-Wilkes on Friday. Tip-off in that game is scheduled for 6 p.m.
