It was an up and down week for the Lady Panthers of Jackson County, as they recorded their first region win of the season, but dropped two other games on the week.
Jackson County will look to start a drive to end their region schedule on an upturn this week, as they travel to Morgan County on Friday to face the Lady Bulldogs in Madison.
Morgan County entered play on Tuesday with a 2-5 region record, and 6-7 overall. The Lady Bulldogs were victorious in their most recent meeting with Jackson County, winning 43-26 back in December.
Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Last week started off with a home stand against the Lady Bulldogs of Hart County.
The Lady Panthers came out of the gate fighting hard, and found themselves tied 7-7 at the end of the first quarter, then moved ahead 24-17 going into the half.
But then in the third quarter, the game seemed to slip away from Jackson County. After a few turnovers, the Lady Bulldogs responded by scoring 16 points to the Lady Panthers’ three, with those points coming from the free throw line as Jackson County suffered a field goal drought.
In the fourth quarter, the Lady Panthers began to fight back, cutting the lead as close as ten late in the fourth quarter, and even had a chance to get back into single digits before missing a couple of shots. But the hole that had been dug a quarter before proved to be too big, and Hart County came away with a 52-39 victory.
Ashley Skelton and Breanna Drew both scored 16 points on the night to lead the team, while Jessica Stevens had 10 rebounds, three steals and two charges.
“We dug ourselves a significant hole,” said coach Chad Pittman. “I was proud of the fact that we never gave up and never quit. We had a strong fourth quarter so we ended the game well, but we just dug ourselves too big of a hole.”
Up next, the Lady Panthers played host to Eastside, a team that came to town off of a 60-51 loss to Stephens County earlier in the week.
The Lady Panthers started off the game on a roll, moving out to a 13-10 lead by the end of the first quarter. But the Lady Eagles responded with a little pressure in the second, and made a run that put Jackson County down 22-15.
The Lady Panthers responded, as Drew completed a three-point play just before the half to bring Jackson County back to within two points, 22-20.
In the second half, the Lady Panthers had 27 defensive rebounds, and down the stretch, they limited the Lady Eagles to only one shot. In the end, the Lady Panthers picked up their first region win, 36-30.
Drew led in scoring for Jackson County with 17 points and nine rebounds, while Skelton had 10 points. Stevens had 14 rebounds on the game.
“In that game, we played really well, and got off to a good start,” Pittman said. “I’m pleased to see we’re coming out of the gate strong, but we’ve got to continue to play well for 32 minutes. But we’re getting off to a good start typically, on most nights.
“In the second half, I thought we did real good job defensively. For the game, we had 27 defensive rebounds, which is probably a season high for us. In our league, with the teams we’re playing, that’s been an Achilles heel for us. I was super proud of that effort on the boards. We executed real well and got the shots we wanted, and managed the game very well.”
The Lady Panthers hoped to carry that momentum from Friday night over to Saturday, when they played host to Banks County.
The Lady Leopards had faced Jackson County two previous times this season, and had lost both times. They were looking to stop that streak.
That came to pass, as Banks County played hard and played well, while the Lady Panthers struggled with their shooting, going 14-49 from the floor. Banks County went on to win 45-37.
For more on this story, see Wednesday's edition of The Jackson Herald or The Braselton News.
I 100% agree. About the Fastpitch, he is destroying that program that WAS in rebuilding stages as well. The other coach quit and now he has promoted a new one that most of the players do not want to play for EXCEPT one. The coach he is promoting spends all her free time with this ONE. All the other players do not want to put up with that CRAP next year, so the majority of them are going elsewhere. GREAT JOB Lancaster. You were told of this problem but you promoted her anyway.
The boys play very hard and they are well coached. They are very young and inexperienced, but I am see them improving every game.
Take your son to Buford. They play in a smaller division. Sounds
like that will be a better fit for him then up here with the big
boys. My son also plays football and I believe basketball
and football are both in the same classification so why
would you say football plays in a different classification?
Doesn't make you a bad person, just a very ignorant one.
Your statement, “how will JCCHS hold on to the talent when they have run these kids off in the past?” I was hired just last year, and I do not believe I have run any potential players off in that short amount of time. Actually, our numbers are higher than past numbers. I inherited the school split. All but 2 basketball players transferred to East Jackson before I was hired. I roamed the halls and found kids that had not played since middle school to build a team. With that team, comprised mainly of freshman and sophomores, we won more games than JC had won in the past 5 years combined. At the end of the season, we pulled up any potential upcoming 9th graders and immediately began working with them. This past summer, we took potential 9th grade players and also upcoming 8th grade players with us to an overnight camp at Mercer University. I know just how important our younger kids are and that is why my staff and I have spent hours with the middle school players that feed into JCCHS. You are correct in that that is how you build a program.
As to your comment “how do we win at the middle school level but lose when those kids get to high school? Why do you say the talent is young and inexperienced?” Again, last year our varsity basketball team started 2 freshmen. JC was the only varsity basketball team in AAAA that started 2 freshman, 2 sophomores, and a junior. Those make slightly different circumstances than 8th graders playing 8th graders. If JC could keep every kid that played at the middle school, that would also help. I am working very hard to do that. Some parents want their child to play at a smaller school such as Jefferson and I respect that decision. Each parent has to do what they feel is best for their child.
I knew going into this job that it would be a tough one. I also knew that a winning program would not be built overnight. I did expect a respectable program to be built overnight and I believe it has been. My coaching staff and I work countless hours with these boys. I am very proud of these kids and all they have accomplished. They have overcome great odds. They have improved greatly in a very short amount of time. I believe we will see great things out of them in the future.
Please feel free to contact me with any additional questions or suggestions for the program. We are definitely building something the community can be proud of and I appreciate all constructive criticism.
Sincerely,
Coach Britt Beaver
Head Boys Varsity Basketball Coach
JCCHS
bbeaver@jackson.k12.ga.us
Sincerely,
Coach Britt Beaver
It seems that the athletic programs are not supported by the administration because most of the athletics have had an extremely weak history, and have just been written off. The question of the decade is “why do most athletes leave Jackson County after middle school?” The answer is parents are tired of giving JCCHS time. We have a principal who rides around in a golf cart at football games with an “I don’t want to be here look on his face”. He was seldom seen at basketball, softball, baseball games or cheer competitions, and when he did show it was clear that he wasn’t there to support the Panthers – an administrator must be present. However, when seen at the numerous Fine Arts performances, he was noticeably fine with “having” to attend. The one sport the principal does seem to enjoy is the one we compete well in – wrestling. I guess it is easier to support activities that were already successful before coming on board. Why not try to make a difference/improvement to the activities that need improving? Why not make an attempt to get to know the students at your school? Why not speak up for JCCHS as a whole and make it a place kids have pride in– that would make more of an impact on YOUR school, community, and our graduation rate.
The Athletic Director and Asst. Athletic Director at a high school need to stand up for all athletics at their school, not only within the school but in the region and State as well. Jackson County will continue to be “crapped on” as long as our athletic program as a whole is weak. In the business world, if you are the director of a division and your division is the weakest link in the company – the director is replaced.
Step up JCCHS administration and do what is right for your students and your community. Get the job done or move on so we can get someone who can. The students deserve better than this!