Union holds on for big victory
Lady Panthers slay the Dragonettes
By JARED PUTNAM

Sentinel photo/Jared Putnam Kaley Sullivan holds on to a loose ball. She had 7 steals against the Dragonettes.

The Lady Panthers pulled out a big win over Pickens County (ranked no. 9 in AAA) Saturday night, defeating the Dragonettes 56-54 to extract a measure of revenge against the team that defeated them 71-49 earlier this year.

"It shows you what this team is capable of. On a nightly basis we don't shoot well, but we do everything else," said Head Coach Mike West. "When we have nights where we shoot well and continue to do the things we already do well we can play with anybody."

The Lady Panthers took a 5-2 lead to open the game, but the game began to look like it could be a repeat of the two teams' first meeting after the Dragonettes went on a 9-0 run that gave them an 11-5 advantage. A basket by Lauren Dyer stopped the bleeding, and the Lady Panthers closed to gap to 14-12 by the end of the first period.

The Lady Panthers continued to play well in the second quarter, and reclaimed the lead 21-20 with 2:47 remaining before the break. Union County continued to apply the defensive pressure as Sarah Fulgham followed up with a steal and layup to extend the lead. The Lady Panthers added two more to take a 25-21 lead into halftime.

Jess, Sarah, and Lauren celebrate after the win.

Candace Williams kept the Lady Panthers on the offensive in the third quarter, hitting a three-pointer to open the period. The Lady Panthers widened the lead to double figures, and Leslie Bittenbinder ran the advantage to 12 on a layup with only 3.2 second on the clock in the third quarter.

The Dragonettes came alive in the fourth quarter, using defensive pressure to spark a 20-8 run. Pickens streak narrowed the Lady Panther's lead down to a single point at 51-50, where the game seemed to stall. Each team traded missed shots until Jess Seabolt knocked down a pair of free throws with 37.5 seconds left in the game. Seabolt then came up with a steal that earned her another trip to the stripe, where she added another freethrow. After Pickens cut the lead in half, Seabolt once again returned to the line, hitting both freethrows to seal the win. With only enough time left for one shot, the Lady Panthers only needed to avoid a foul, and stood aside to allow Pickens a meaningless basket as the game ended.

Leslie Bittenbinder fires off the shot.

"I thought we played well defensively," said Coach West. "We switched up our zones and did a really good job of executing them."

Coach West said that the team did not press at all or play any man-to-man defense, something they had not done all year up until Saturday night. "Kaley Sullivan came out in the first quarter and was aggressive defensively and she just set the tone early," said the coach. "Every kid I put out there contributed. [Every position] played well. The coach said that the team supported one another through the entire game. "It was the way it should be. It was basketball at its finest," said Coach West.

"Jess Seabolt didn't shoot all these threes and played within herself and played a great game. Candace was not a shooter, she was a scorer, and thats what we need her to be. She got in there and battled for boards, she drove and didn't just settle for outside shots. She was confident." Sarah Fulgham played well, applying good pressure and scoring 10 points, including one layup that came off of a steal from the Dragonettes point guard. "That was big because if you steal it from that girl you have done something," said the coach.

Kaley Sullivan protects the ball as Head Coach Mike West watches the action.

Candace Williams led the Lady Panthers with a career high 24 points to go along with 8 rebounds. Sarah Fulgham added 10 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals. Jess Seabolt had 8 rebounds and hit 5 of 6 free throws in the fourth quarter. Kaley Sullivan had a whopping 7 steals on defense.

The coach said that it looked like the team had turned the corner against White, but seemed to take a step back. He hopes that this win over Pickens will be the win the team needs to springboard them through the rest of the season.

"Maybe we get a second chance to learn our lesson," said Coach West. "If you can play with White and Pickens you can play with anybody, you just have to go do it. But we have been playing to the level of our competition and we can't do that, we have to be ready to play every night."

The Lady Panthers have a big game coming up against Fannin this Friday, a game they need to win in order to have a solid chance to win the subregion.

Union 44 - Murphy 54

Prior to the win over Pickens, the Lady Panthers faced the Lady Bulldogs of Murphy. Although Union built a big lead in the third period, it slipped away in the fourth quarter. "It's frustrating," said Coach West. "In the third quarter we had 9 baskets. In the fourth quarter we hit two freethrows and were 0-14 from the field and had 6 turnovers. They went on an 18-0 run to finish the game."

Candace Williams led the team with 15 points while Sarah Fulgham added 10. Kayla Gowder scored 7 points and grabbed 11 rebounds.

The team is down to nine varsity players, but Coach West hopes that the team is now refocused and ready to make a run. "There were a lot of unfortunate things that happened in that game and we had to move on and we moved on the next day at practice," said the coach. "We had a long conversation and talked about playing as a team, being focused, and caring about each other. I felt that we did a good job of listening to that and being focused and ready to play [against Pickens.] Hopefully that's the way its going to be and we'll be ready to play every night."