Twice last week, the Jackson County Lady Panthers hit an odd snag, an anomaly in their game that cost them the chance at victory.
In back to back games, they hit a “dead zone” in the third quarter that gave their opponents an opportunity to score big, which they did, giving Elbert County and Morgan County both victories over the Lady Panthers, who now find themselves in the midst of a three game losing streak.
But the Lady Panthers are hopeful that they can shake off the Third Quarter Blues, and get back on the path to the post season.
Their next opportunity for that comes on Friday, as Jackson County travels to Oconee County to face the Lady Warriors, a team that entered play on Tuesday with a 3-5 region record, and 9-9 overall.
In their last meeting, The Lady Warriors pulled out a close win, 49-47, back on Jan. 16.
Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Elbert County
The Lady Panthers started off last week with a home stand against Elbert County, who currently sits third in the subregion standings. Jackson County had come up just short in their previous meeting between the two teams, so hopes were high for a chance to pick up another region win for the Lady Panthers.
After a solid start, Jackson County found themselves trailing 25-19 at the half.
Then came what coach Chad Pittman called a “third quarter breakdown.”
The Lady Blue Devils went on a run, scoring 13 points in the third while holding Jackson County to only four points, giving Elbert County a 38-23 lead.
The Lady Panthers fought back in the fourth, and at one point they cut the lead to seven points. In all, the Lady Panthers scored 20 points in the fourth quarter, but the deficit created in the third was just too great, as Elbert County went on to win 55-43.
Breanna Drew led Jackson County in scoring with 22 points and seven rebounds, while Ashley Skelton scored 14 points on the night.
“One thing that I hope we’ve learned is that we have to be consistent and we have to play for 32 minutes,” Pittman said. “If you have too many lulls in these games, it will come back and bite you, and it did.”
Morgan County
Up next was a trip to Madison to face the Lady Bulldogs of Morgan County.
It was the second meeting of the two teams this season, as Morgan County defeated the Lady Panthers back in December.
Friday’s game started out much the same way as Tuesday’s, with the Lady Panthers working hard to stay within striking distance through the first half. Morgan County took control in the first quarter, but in the second,
Jackson County struck back and by the half, the Lady Panthers were down only by one point, 26-25.
Then came the third quarter, and again, the wheels came off for Jackson County.
Morgan County added 19 points to their score, while they held the Lady Panthers to only two points in the quarter. Pittman made several substitutions to try to overcome the problems, but regardless, Jackson County found themselves on the short end of a 45-27 score at the end of the third quarter.
The team came back to life in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Lady Bulldogs 24-14. The lead was cut to ten points quickly at the opening of the quarter, and at one point, Jackson County moved to within six points. But in the end, it was Morgan County coming away with the 58-53 victory.
Drew led Jackson County in scoring against the Lady Bulldogs with 28 points and 10 rebounds.
“Somehow, I’ve got to figure out for the rest of the season how we can play well in the third quarter,” Pittman said.
For more on this story, see Wednesday's edition of The Jackson Herald or The Braselton News.
