Lady Cats split weekend region games, Bearcats let one slip away against Peach County
Published 11:24 am Wednesday, February 5, 2025
Lady Cats Bounce Back: Lady Cats sit in fourth place of Region 1 play after a domiant 20-point win over Peach County on Saturday.
Zykeria Gadson with her family at mid-court.
Arrieanna Hines poses to the camera with her family at mid-court.
Kennedy Jones at mid-court with her family celebrating senior night.
Daviona McKay stand at mid-court with her family holding flowers for senior night.
Ta'Liyah Ausgood with her family at mid-court celebrating senior night.
Denisha Chappell posing for the camera at mid-court.
Kyra Green with her family at mid-court celebrating senior night.
Ahleah Jones at mid-court with her family embracing the spotlight.
Z'riah Solomon with her family at mid-court celebrating senior night.
Stacey Glenn taking his photo at mid-court during senior night celebrations.
Camryn Scott with his family at mid-court posing for the camera.
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Despite a tenacious attempt on senior night, the Bainbridge Lady Cats (9-12, 2-5) and Bearcats (7-14, 1-6) fell short against the Monroe Golden Tornadoes with a final score of 47-24 and 59-40. The teams demonstrated their commitment and passion until the very end. Senior players Ahleah Jones, Kyra Green, Denisha Chappell, Ta’Liyah Ausgood, Z’riah Solomon, Stacey Glenn, and Camryn Scott, who led the Bearcats in scoring with 12 points against Monroe were all celebrated for their outstanding contributions to the Bainbridge Bearcats basketball program, leaving a lasting legacy on and off the court. Kennedy Jones, Zykeria Gadson, Arrieanna Hines, and Daviona McKay were the senior cheerleaders celebrated in between the girls’ and boys’ games last Friday.
The Lady Cats struggled to score from the field Friday night. They were led in scoring by No. 0 Jones, No. 14 Ausgood, and No. 32 Solomon, who all scored five points on the evening. However, they were able to bounce back impressively the following night against the Peach County Trojans, defeating them 52-32. It was a critical win for the Lady Cats that put them squarely in fourth place with two Region 1 regular-season games on the schedule.
Bainbridge snapped back into a strong scoring rhythm with double-figure scoring in every quarter. No. 0 Jones led the Lady Cats with 14 points, followed by No. 4 Green with ten points. Freshman No. 2 Hailey Anderson had nine points and No. 14 Ausgood poured in nine points on three made three-pointers all in the third quarter.
The Lady Cats held a 10-9 lead after the first eight minutes of action before extending their lead to eight at intermission 21-13.
“One of my players asked at halftime ‘How come we couldn’t do this last night?’ ‘I said, well, for one you were playing against a different monster last night,’ Bainbridge boys and girls varsity basketball coach, Kelvin Cochran said. “We were also down one of our starters on senior night, Kyra, one of our better athletes, so that hurt us and Da’Nydia turned her ankle really bad, so I know we won’t have her next week.”
The second half was a continuation of confident basketball that saw the Lady Cats surrender just 12 points in the last 16 minutes after a disappointing senior night performance.
“I thought the girls played confidently, they made shots, so they were feeling themselves tonight,” Cochran said. “We let one slip away against Peach, we should’ve won that first matchup, but they wanted to get this one back tonight.”
The Bearcats showed good ball movement and an ability to keep the Trojans to one possession in a low-scoring first half tied at eight with 3:50 remaining. Bainbridge held a 14-13 lead at the break, and a 23-20 lead entering the fourth quarter, but would let the game slip away, losing 38-34.
With the game tied at 28, sophomore No. 23 Keion Williams converted a clutch-and-one finish at the rim with 4:13 of the fourth quarter to give the Bearcats a three-point cushion. The following possession saw Scott drill a corner three on the left corner to give Bainbridge their largest lead of the game, but unfortunately, it was the last basket the Bearcats would make for the remainder of three minutes and change.
“Both teams played last night, then you’re playing an early three o’clock game instead of your normal six, that throws off the normal game time routine,” Cochran said regarding the low-scoring affair between Peach County, on Saturday evening. “We just got to play better offensively and stop beating ourselves because we’re not giving ourselves a chance to win when you have back-to-back-to-back turnovers. It’s late in the season. We’re 21 games in.” he said.
The Bearcats were led in scoring by Williams with ten points against the Trojans. No. 24 Ja’Veen Breedlove had six points on the evening, and both Scott and freshman, No. 5 Jamarion Cooper scored five points, Saturday evening. Cooper finished with 11 points over the weekend stretch of games against Monroe and Peach County.
The Bearcats and Lady Cats have a packed travel schedule this week due to the rescheduling of games from winter storm Enzo. They faced the Dougherty Trojans on Tuesday night. on February 6, the Lady Cats and Bearcats play at Westwood beginning at 5:00 p.m. and 6:30 p.m., to determine seeding for the region tournament next week. February 7, the Lady Cats travel to Early County tipping off at 6:00 p.m., and the Bearcats tip off at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, February 8, the Lady Cats play at Cairo at 6:00 p.m. followed by the Bearcats tipping off at 7:30 against rival Cairo.
“It’s going to be a gauntlet for us,” Cochran said. “Trying to squeeze those makeup games in before the region tournament, some games are back-to-back-to-back, so I need to have lighter practices, save legs, reiterate taking care of your bodies, and sleep. I might have to go deeper into our bench instead of those top eight or nine. It’ll be a challenge, but at the end of the day it’s still basketball, with the region tournament starting you have to play three nights in a row, you just do what you have to do.”
