The Lady Eagles of East Jackson are riding a wave of success into the Christmas break.
Their good fortune started with a victory last Wednesday against Commerce, then carried on to Friday night with a win over Washington-Wilkes.
The Lady Eagles get a chance to catch their breath now, as they will be out of action until Dec. 23, when they will travel to Philips Arena in Atlanta to face North Hall.
The Lady Trojans will enter the Dec. 23 pairing looking to rebound from a rough start to their season, which has seen them record only one win so far.
In their last match up, North Hall took a 63-46 win back in December of 2007.
Tip-off at Philips Arena is scheduled for 1 p.m.
East Jackson picked up their second win of the season with a historic victory over the Commerce Lady Tigers in the first meeting of the two teams.
The Lady Tigers looked stout in the first quarter, coming away with a 10-4 lead. But the Lady Eagles mounted a charge, and held a commanding 21-11 lead by the half. Both teams held each other at a standstill in the third quarter, with the Lady Eagles scoring only two points, while Commerce scored four to end the quarter 23-15. But East Jackson surged forward in the fourth quarter, and moved away to the 36-29 win
Terin Gillespie and Abby Adams both scored seven points in the game, while Shelby Johnson and Autumn Wilbanks both scored six. Brooklyn Watkins and Bralee Griffin both scored four.
Johnson had three steals and drew five charges. Mikki McGinnis had 11 rebounds on the night, while Adams had six and Callie Moore had five.
“It was a very hard fought game between two scrappy and aggressive teams,” said coach Amy Larimer. “I was impressed with how some of my younger players really stepped up when we needed them. Terin, one of our senior leaders, hit some clutch free throws in the fourth quarter to seal the game.
“It’s great to see individuals step up and take leadership roles. That is really something we have been working on.”
The win left East Jackson 2-4 heading into Friday’s pairing with another Tiger team, this time the Lady Tigers of Washington-Wilkes.
The Lady Eagles started strong from the beginning, moving out to a 13-8 lead by the end of the first quarter. They widened that lead in the second, and went into halftime with a 27-21 edge over Washington-Wilkes.
But the Lady Tigers came out fighting in the third, and closed the gap to a one-point lead, 37-36, by the end of the third quarter. But East Jackson was not to be denied, and moved their lead out farther by the end, winning 54-49.
Wilbanks led East Jackson in scoring with 19, while Moore scored nine, Gillespie seven, Griffin six and Kaitlin Hill six. Moore also had eight rebounds, while Wilbanks had seven.
The Lady Eagles had a total of 27 steals, with Gillespie getting seven, Shelby Johnson getting six, and McGinnis and Moore both getting four.
Gillespie had eight assists on the night.
“It was really important for us to get two wins this week and we were able to accomplish that goal,” Larimer said. “It was another hard fought game and I feel like we played an entire game.
“We now have to focus on our rematch against North Hall. It will be an exciting game and a good experience for the team playing at Philips Arena.”
