Newspaper Page Text
PAGE 2B - THE COMMERCE (GA) NEWS - WEDNESDAY. FEBRUARY 4, 2009
East Jackson Basketball
Eagles Take Over Second Place In Subregion
By Brandon Reed
Last week proved just how strong the
East Jackson Eagles are, as they nailed
down sole possession of second place in
the subregion with a strong victory over
Banks County.
Next up is a home stand against a
strong Rabun County team on Friday. The
Wildcats entered play on Tuesday 5-4 in
the region, and 12-9 overall, fresh off a win
over Union County.
The two teams have split their last two
meetings, with East Jackson winning the
first and Rabun County the second, both
in January of 2008. Tip-off is scheduled for
8:30 p.m.
Banks County
The Eagles were hoping to keep their
momentum up off of a Jan. 24 win over
Washington-Wilkes as they hosted Banks
County last Tuesday, while the Leopards
sought to close in on the second place
Eagles in the subregion standings. They
entered the game with a 3-4 region record,
and were hoping to end a four game losing
streak.
The Eagles had different plans. They
took command of the game early, moving
out to a 14-6 lead by the end of the first
quarter. The Leopards came fighting back
in the second quarter, putting 23 points on
the board, while East Jackson added 15,
tying the game at 29 at the half.
The third quarter told the tale. As they
held Banks County to only eight points in
the quarter, the Eagles added 26 points to
take a commanding 55-37 lead. The Eagles
stayed in control through the fourth quar
ter to put away the win, 66-44.
Kolby Gilbert led scoring with 18 points,
while Terry Cox scored 12 and Standrick
Stephens added 10.
Oconee County
Things didn’t go quite as well on Saturday,
against non-region opponent Oconee
County.
After struggling for much of the game,
East Jackson gained some ground on
Oconee in the third quarter, and found
themselves trailing by just one point, 32-31,
going into the fourth quarter. But the
Warriors stepped up, hitting some key
shots down the stretch, and came away
with a 49-43 win.
Kolby Gilbert led East Jackson with
16 points, while Zach Gilbert scored a
season-high 11 points.
It also marked the last non-region game
of the season for the Eagles, who went
into play on Tuesday trailing only the 5-1
Jefferson Dragons in the subregion.
East Jackson was slated to travel to North
Oconee to face the Titans on Tuesday.
Results were unavailable at press time.
- Lady Eagles Season Drawing To A Close
Continued from page IB
intense defense and made some things hap
pen,” said coach Amy Larimer. “We let off in
the second quarter and never reached that
same level of intensity. We have to maintain
that level throughout the entire game.”
The loss left East Jackson 6-13 overall and
1-6 in the region.
Oconee County
Next up was a trip to Oconee County
to face the Lady Warriors, a team that
defeated East Jackson in a close six-point
game in December.
The Lady Warriors took control early.
They led 10-8 after the first quarter and
extended it to 29-10 at the half.
The situation got worse in the third quar
ter as Oconee County held East Jackson
to only three points while they added 12 to
their tally to put the game out of reach 41-13
at the end of the third.
Oconee County coasted to the 54-24 vic
tory.
Wilbanks led the offense with eight
points. Bralee Griffin and McGinnis each
scored four.
Hill had seven rebounds on the night,
while Johnson, Gillespie and McGinnis
each grabbed five. Gillespie had four assists,
and Abby Adams had four steals.
“We lacked overall intense play,” Larimer
said .“We came out ready the first quarter
and ended it down two, which is where we
needed to be. We have to be able to keep
up the same level of play throughout the
entire game.”
The Lady Eagles were scheduled to face
North Oconee on the road in subregion
action on Tuesday. Results were unavailable
at press time.
For local news headlines and sports updates go online to
www.CommerceNewsTODAY.com
m
Fittings
Bag Evaluations
Repairs
Putting Green
Equipment
Apparel
Accessories
Gift Certificates
Available
50% OFF
Women’s Apparel
/wfK* .
706-612-1159
7fle axe feletteed ta
axuuietctce, • •
We now have three convenient
locations to serve you:
1531 Parkhill Dr.
Gainesville, GA
1091 Park Dr., Suite B
Watkinsville, GA
Our office offers complete
ophthalmology services which include
diagnosis and treatment of:
651 S. Milledge Ave.
Athens, GA
We offer bladeless lasik \
featuring the Intralase laser. 0%
financing is available for 24 months.
Full Optical Shop
At Gainesville Location!
• diabetic retinopathy
• cataracts
• glaucoma
• dry eye
• contact lens fittings
• macular degeneration
• routine eye examinations
• laser vision correction
888-2DR-BLUE orvisit
www.bluelasergroup.com
Call today to schedule an
appointment
Blue
LASER
GROUP
Ed Sliniuion, Jr., OD
Rirluml II. Blue, M.D.
Lady Tigers Are Under Pressure As End Looms
By Justin Poole
Commerce Lady Tigers’
coach Eddie McCurley
understands that younger
players stepping in to fill
the shoes of their injured
teammates are under a lot of
pressure to put points on the
board as the region tourna
ment looms.
“Until we find a way to
score more points, we are
going to have a bad stretch,”
said McCurley. 'Trying to
keep the enthusiasm going
for playing in the region
tournament is going to be
difficult.”
None of the injured players
are expected to return this
season. However, McCurley
thinks that with a few chang
es the Lady Tigers can make
the best of the situation.
“We have to try to play
hard for 32 minutes and try
to run the fast break more
off a missed shot,” McCurley
said. “What people have
done is getting in a zone on
us and making us shoot it
from the outside.”
With four games left in the
regular season, Commerce
must play an A game every
time the ladies step onto the
floor.
Commerce hosts Athens
Academy Friday night at
7:00.
Last time the two met,
Commerce had all of its
starters and pulled out a
win. With the younger play
ers stepping in, the Tigers
will have to display a strong
defense and focus more on
playing their game than the
scoreboard to pick up a vic
tory.
Coming up on Saturday,
the Lady Tigers head to
Prince Avenue, where the
Lady Wolverines are looking
for payback after the earlier
40-28 defeat by Commerce.
Game time is 6:00 p.m.
“There are no games right
now for us that are going to
be easy, not that there were
before,” said McCurley.
Last week, Commerce
grabbed a needed win over
Tallulah Falls. The 42-23 win
Tuesday moved the Lady
Tigers to 5-6 in region play.
Commerce controlled the
game from the start and led
15-8 at the half and contin
ued the dominance the rest
of the way.
Jessie Flint and Shekia
Moon led the scoring with
10 points apiece. Skylar
Beasley and Lauren Jones
added eight each with Drea
Mathis and Erica Green
picking up three each.
'The win came at a good
time to lift our spirits a bit,”
McCurley said.
The lift came before
Jefferson demolished
Commerce on Friday.
In a game that can only
be described as painful,
Commerce's Lady Tigers
suffered a 62-20 defeat.
Commerce was down 26-6
at the half. The Lady Tigers
added 14 points in the sec
ond half.
Beasley led Commerce
with six points followed by
Mathis with five. Flint, Moon,
Jessika Kyle and Green each
added two points. Logan
Brown scored one point for
Commerce.
On Saturday, Commerce
lost to Social Circle, 64-31.
The Lady Tigers held their
own in the first period, but
trouble scoring baskets took
its toll. At the end of the half
Social Circle had run away
with the game and led 31-13.
Beasley scored eight
points, Brown added six,
Moon and Jones contributed
four points each, Flint had
three followed by Mathis,
Green and Kyle with two
apiece.
-- Commerce Looks To Secure Fourth Seed
Continued from page IB
at the half.
“We didn’t shoot well,” said coach Chad
Bridges.
Missing shots and a lack of pressure on
the boards allowed Jefferson to build a lead
Commerce couldn’t overcome.
Billings led the scoring with 12, followed
by Cash with nine points. Wilcher picked
up eight points, Norris added six and
Green and Romans scored two apiece.
With the loss to Jefferson fresh in their
minds, the Tigers traveled Saturday to play
Social Circle where they picked up their
seventh region win, 52-43.
The Tigers jumped ahead early, leading at
the half 24-12. Social Circle made a move
in the third quarter and cut the gap to two
points. With a narrow 37-35 advantage,
Commerce limited Social Circle to eight
fourth-quarter points while adding 15 to
secure the win.
Billings and Norris led Commerce with 17
points each. Cash picked up 10 followed by
Green’s six points. Anderson rounded out
the scoring with two points.
KEEP YOUR FAMILY CLOSE WITH
700 NATIONAL SHARED
WHENEVER MINUTES'
PLUS UNLIMITED T -Mobile-to-T-Mobile Calling
UNLIMITED Nights & Weekends
JUST $59.99 a month for the first 2 lines
up to 3 additonal lines, just $9.99 each a month
Limited time offer. New activation requited. Rate plan otter may require minimum I -year agreement.
Phone otter requires minimum 2-year agreement and activation per line ot service tor each phone. Taxes
and tees not included.
Limited Time Offer
Free after $50 mail-in rebate and
$110.00 in-store rebate
Motorola ACTV Mandarin
Orange
MSRPS159.99
T--Mobile-'
authorized dealer
Commerce
Next To Sears
706-423-9680
PLUS
NEW STORE NOW OPEN
Limited time otter subject to change. Offer expires 3/8/2009. GENERAL TERMS:
Subject to credit approval. Minimum t- or 2-yr service agreement req'd. Per line
activation tee. $200/lme early cancellation lee 8 Regulatory Programs Fee (not a tax
or government-mandated charge! ol $.86 per mo. per line apply. Taxes approx.
6-28% of monthly bill. Overage minutes extra; partial minutes rounded up for billing.
NIGHTS AND WEEKENDS: .'.eekends are 12:00:01 a.m. Saturday to 11:59:59 p.m.
Sunday, based upon start time ol call. Nights are 12:00:01 a.m. to 6:59:59 a.m. and
9:00:00 p.m. to 11:59:59 p.m„ Monday through Fnday. based upon start time of call.
T-Mobile-to-T-Mobile tailing means directly dialed calls between T-Mobiie phones
which are transmitted by cell lowers located within the T-Mobile network calling area.
Includes most, but not all, of the T-Mobile domestic service area DISCOUNTED
PHONE / IN-STORE REBATE OFFER: limited to specific mode!(s! shown: Supplies
may be limited and offer may not be available at all locations. See store for details.
DISCOUNTED PHONE / MAIL-IN REBATE OFFER: Limited to specific model(s)
shown. Supplies may be limited and otter may not be available at all locations.
T-Mobile reserves nght to substitute different phone models ol equal or greater value.
Allow up to 4 weeks lor delivery ol phone. One phone per eligible account. Must
remain on a qualifying rate plan at the time rebate is processed. Allow up to 8 weeks
lor rebate. See rebate form tor details. COVERAGE: Service not available everywhere:
lor details see Coverage Maps at T-Mobile.cc ABNORMAL CALL PATTERNS: Call
duration and/or your continued eligibility for any rate plan may be limited or
terminated for (a) consumer protection purposes, (b) abusive conduct or abnormal
call pattemts), or (c) significant non-T-Mobile network usage. See Pricing, Services
and Device brochures, and T-Mobile’s Terms and Conditions (including
mandatory arbitration) at T-Mobile.com. tor additional rate plan information,
charges for features and services, and restrictions and details. T-Mobile. the
magenta color, and the HotSpot design are registered trademarks ol Deutsche
Telekom AG. WHENEVER Minutes is a registered trademark, and myFaves. the
myFaves design. Who's in Your Fave 5, HotSpot @Home, FlexPay, and stick together
ate service marks, ol T-Mobile USA, Inc.