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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 3, 2024 BANKS COUNTY NEWS PAGE 5A Leopards win over two teams during Buc’s Holiday Invitational By HANNAH CAUDELL The Leopards basketball team traveled to Panama City, Fla., on Thursday to compete in the Buc’s Hol iday Invitational Tourna ment. On Thursday, the Leop ards lost their first match to the Webb School with a score of 73-61. Despite their early setback, the Leopards won their final two games against the East Side High School Eagles and the Mad ison County Red Raiders. This week, the Leopards will begin competing in the 2A Region 8 tourna ment with their first match against the East Jackson Ea gles on Wednesday, Jan. 3, at 7:30 p.m. at East Jackson High School. On Friday, Jan. 5, the Leopards will face off against the Fellowship Christian Paladins at home at 7:30 p.m. On Saturday, Jan. 6, the Leopards will have a re match against the Prince Avenue Christian Wolver ines at 5:30 p.m at home. They will also be celebrat ing senior night for seniors Aaron Scott and Webb Sam ples. AGAINST EAST SIDE Against East Side, the Leopards won with a five- point lead of 41-36 on Fri day. On Saturday, the Leop ards ended their run in the tournament with a tough match against the Red Raid ers. After going into overtime, the Leopards won with a one-point margin of 59-58. “We came down to the Buc’s Holiday Invitation al to play three really good teams, and we did that,” Head Coach Ryan Griffin said after the tournament. “We knew it would be a test for us, but we knew our guys were ready for it.” Against East Side, Kol- by Watson led the fray on offense with 11 points, fol lowed by Dayden Rogers with eight points. Aaron Scott, Hunter Youngblood, Caden Watson, Luke Dale, and Antonio Gonzalez also contributed in points. Scott was the leader on defense, collecting the most rebounds for the team with 10 total, followed by Caden Watson with nine. Kolby Watson, Rogers, Young blood, Dale, and Gonzalez were largely responsible for steals and assists for the team. Dining their final match against the Red Raiders, the Leopards stayed neck-and- neck with Madison County until the final buzzer sound ed, showing a tie on the board. The two teams were sent into overtime. In the final few seconds, the Leopards were down two points. With two and a half seconds left on the clock, Dale was able to steal the ball from a Madison County player and throw it to Caden Watson, who was waiting at the net. With the ball on the three- point line, Caden Watson made a final attempt to score as the clock wound down to zero. Caden Watson’s three- point shot was successful, beating the buzzer by mere milliseconds and winning the game for the Leopards with 59-58. Dale led the Leopards throughout the Madison County game on offense with 16 points earned, fol lowed by Scott with 12 points. Caden Watson, Gon zalez, Rogers, and Young blood also contributed. Scott once again led the rebound game with eight successful attempts, fol lowed by Gonzalez with four rebounds. Caden Wat son, Dale, Rogers, and Youngblood contributed with rebounds, assists, and steals. Photos by Brian Savage/Savagehoops.com Kolby Watson grips the ball before a Webb School player can knock it out of his hand while he attempts a two-point shot. Caden Watson runs the ball toward the net while a Webb School player stays on his heels. Luke Dale goes for a two-point shot amid a group of Webb School players. Aaron Scott leaps toward the goal while two Webb School players try to block his shot. Lady Leopards win against Pleasure Ridge Park and Pensacola By HANNAH CAUDELL The Lady Leopards traveled to Panama City last week to compete in the Buc’s Holiday Invitational during win ter break. On Thursday, they lost their first match to the Fort Walton Beach Lady Vikings with 41-31. However, in their last two matches, the Lady Leopards took the victory against Pleasure Ridge Park and Pensacola. Against the Pleasure Ridge Park Lady Panthers, the Lady Leopards won with a score of 51 -34. On their last day of the tournament, the Lady Leopards emerged victorious against the Pensacola Lady Tigers with a score of 47-31. COMING UP This week, the Lady Leopards will begin competing in the 2A Region 8 tournament, starting off with a match against the East Jackson Lady Eagles at East Jackson High School on Wednesday, Jan. 3, at 6 p.m. On Friday, Jan. 5, the Lady Leopards will go against the Fellowship Christian Lady Paladins at home at 6 p.m. On Saturday, Jan. 6, the Lady Leopards will have a rematch against the Lady Wolverines of Prince Avenue Christian at 4 p.m. The Lady Leopards will also be cele brating senior night to honor seniors Addison Hoard, Car- ley Segars, Valentina Torres, and Maddie Hicks. LAST WEEK During Friday’s match against Pleasure Ridge, the Lady Leopards had a rough start to the game, falling to the Lady Panthers by 10 points with 16-6. But the team decided that they would win this match despite the setback, and came back in the second quarter to earn 20 points to put them into the lead. Throughout the rest of the match, the Lady Leopards didn’t allow the Lady Panthers to earn more than seven points a quarter, assuring their victory with aggressive de fensive and offensive maneuvers. While going up against Pensacola for their last match, the Lady Leopards and the Lady Tigers stayed on each oth er’s heels throughout the first half. In the first quarter, the teams tied with 12 points each, and in the second quarter the Lady Leopards were able to pull ahead by only two points. However, after the break in momentum, the Lady Leop ards returned to the court rejuvenated and ready to play for another 16 minutes. The third quarter was their most successful quarter offensively with 18 points earned, and they finished out the game with a 16 point lead of 47-31. Photos by Brian Savage/Savagehoops.com Maggie Irvin attempts a two-point shot against the Fort Wal ton Beach Lady Vikings. Ella Kate Shedd leaps toward the goal for a layup shot while a Fort Walton Beach Lady Viking tries to block her shot. Addison Hoard throws the ball toward the goal to attempt a two-point shot while a Fort Walton Beach Lady Viking tries to block. Emmie Chitwood quickly identifies an open teammate on the court to pass the ball to before she is overwhelmed by a Fort Walton Beach player.
