The Bainbridge Middle School Lady Cats and Bearcats divided a pair of Monday basketball games with the McIntyre Park Middle School seventh-grade Lady Bulldogs and Bulldogs in Thomasville.

Coach Patrick Clark’s Lady Cats dropped the opener 43-31, and coach Heith Maxwell’s Bearcats won the nightcap 52-29. Both teams are now 3-1 on the season.

Top performers for the Lady Cats were Kristin Baldwin, who led the way with 13 points; Beonka Madge, who contributed 8 points; Andrecia Jackson, who put in 5 points; Breanna Butler, who pumped in 4 points, and Patra Parris, who scored 1 point.

Point guard Henry Kelly led a balanced Bearcats scoring chart with a game-high 23 points. Also in double figures for the Bearcats were center Greg Cooper with 11 and forward Craig Cooper with 10.

Rounding out the winning Bearcats scoring chart were guard Jalin Belin with 4 and forward Chad Jenkins and point guard Jashon Levens with 2 apiece.

Clark and Maxwell both expressed pleasure with their team’s performances against McIntyre Park.

“We beat McIntyre Park by 12 points at home and they beat us by 12 points in Thomasville,” Clark said. “Our defense was not as tight Monday as it was here, but the young ladies hustled and gave me a 100 percent effort the whole game. The young ladies have just got to practice hard and get better, and I know they will. They really get after it in practice just as they do in games. I am very proud of them.”

Maxwell said his Bearcats are playing better and better defensively every time out.

The Bearcats took command early and were on top at the end of each quarter. They led 12-8 at the end of the first quarter, 29-14 at halftime and 44-24 after three quarter.

The Lady Cats and Bearcats will return to action Thursday, Dec. 3, when they host the Thomas County Central Middle School Lady Yellow Jackets and Yellow Jackets at the Decatur County Memorial Coliseum.

The girls game will begin at 4:30 p.m. and the boys game will get underway at 5:45 p.m.