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The Bainbridge High School Lady Cats basketball team picked up their two biggest wins of the season on Friday and Monday, both coming against Cairo High School as they defeated their rivals to earn a spot in the Region Tournament. On a weekend where the Lady Cats seniors were honored, they finished the 2023 regular season with their two best performances of the season.

Seniors Zoe Wells, Elexis Warner and Treasure Jenkins were recognized on senior night as they took home framed jerseys with their numbers; a gift they can display for years to come. Not only have the seniors led by their performance, but they have embodied the tenacity that head coach Danny Evans coaches with every game.

“Elexis has been in this program the longest,” said Evans. “She’s been steadfast, great defensive player, she’s fast and quick. She’s been here through all the ups and downs and she’s one of the vocal leaders of this program. Zoe Wells was here her first two years and came back and as a senior she’s been very vocal, she’s fought through injury and just battles every day. I can’t say enough about Treasure Jenkins. Not playing for three years and then coming back as a senior and being a dominant force in the paint has really been a joy to watch.”

After a slow first quarter start against Cairo, the Lady Cats found their rhythm midway through the second quarter and never cooled down. The Lady Cats saw nine different players score in their win, led by sophomore Z’riah Solomon who posted a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds.

Senior Elexis Warner was also consistent with eight points of her own on Friday to go along with two assists. Miyah Williams scored seven of her own points as well on Friday. Sophomore Kyra Green had a standout game on both sides of the court as she not only poured in four of her own points, but also grabbed seven rebounds, four of them coming on the defensive end.

Although the Lady Cats record isn’t where coach Evans would like it to be, the Lady Cats are an incredibly young team who received countless minutes of game experience in 2023. They showed an aggressive prowess on defense that Evans emphasizes every practice and they know that the future of Lady Cats basketball is bright.

“The girls have really seen the light and have turned up the aggression in competition,” said Evans. “Early on we lost some close games and I think those tight games have taught us how to handle pressure and how to handle those types of situations in the future. There have been some games we let slip away but I can see a focus and that the girls are locked in. It took some adversity but I think experiencing that allowed our girls to really focus themselves on winning.”

In their second performance against Cairo, the Lady Cats wasted no time getting things rolling as they jumped out to an early lead, playing an aggressive defense, capitalizing off of turnovers, and controlling the pace of the game.

Sophomore Z’riah Solomon once again had a huge double-double for the Lady Cats, finishing with 16 points and 15 rebounds. Elexis Warner, Ahleah Jones and Zoe Wells all stuffed the stat sheet in Monday’s win, but it was a full team effort as they were physical on defense and ran a full court press all game that flustered the Cairo offense.

Their latest win gave the Lady Cats a spot in the Region tournament as they carry a two game winning streak into the tournament that starts later this week.