VALDOSTA — The Lowndes Vikettes now stand alone atop the Region 1-AAAAA girls basketball standings, following a 40-34 victory over the Colquitt County Lady Packers on Tuesday night.

The win for the Vikettes was their first against their region rival from Moultrie since February 2010.

“Every time we play (Colquitt County) it is going to be close,” Lowndes head coach Shan Garner said. “This team beat us three times last year, so this is redemption for (our team).”

No player scored in double figures for Lowndes on the night. Instead, the Vikettes saw contributions from a variety of players. Jamesia Jones recorded a team-high nine points in a starting role, while Courtne Washington and sophomore Tasia Brown each added eight points.

Overall, Garner was pleased with the team’s effort, as his team improved to 17-1 overall and 2-0 in region play.

“We had some key contributions from some kids that don’t usually give us some things,” Garner said. “That post move that (Brittany) Ingram made late doesn’t seem like a lot. She may have ended up with just four points, but that was a time when we were really struggling. ... Tasia Brown was huge tonight at working that middle.”

The Vikettes took a nine-point lead on two separate occasions in the second quarter, but gave way to a Lady Packer run in the third quarter, which saw them outscore Lowndes 14-8 in the frame. The Lady Packers managed to knot the game even at 25-25 with 2:49 to play in the quarter. From there, the game featured three more ties and five lead changes.

Luckily for the Vikettes, they grabbed the final lead of the night, which came on a Courtne Washington field goal with 5:12 left to play in the fourth quarter.

Washington then added a free throw, which made the score 37-34. Lowndes extended its lead a few possessions later behind a Jamesia Jones field goal, making the score 39-34. Danyelle Jones added a free throw with 17 seconds remaining to ice the game.

For the most part, the game was filled with big defensive plays, with both teams forcing countless turnovers on the night.

“At times we struggle to score because I think we rely on our perimeter game too much,” Garner said. “We have to throw it inside.”

Colquitt County was led by the play of Mekabe Ponder, who recorded a game-high 18 points on the night.



Lowndes boys 63, Colquitt County 51

The Lowndes Vikings earned their first region victory of the 2011-12 season Tuesday night, defeating the struggling Colquitt County Packers, 63-51.

“That feels great,” Vikings head coach Kingston Clark said. “We have been waiting for one for a while now. It was tough throughout, but I thought the guys kept a well-maintained game. We needed that tonight.”

In just his fourth game with the Vikings, Kevin Willard led the way with a game-high 20 points, 10 of which came in the opening quarter. The senior’s quick start to the game gave the Vikings an 18-12 first quarter lead.

“(Willard) is just one of those guys that can go out there and go hard every single time that he is out on the floor,” Clark said. “He made the pace of the game and picked up the tempo, because at the start, it looked like it was going to be one of those slow-type ball games … He made the difference tonight.”

Willard’s opening quarter performance was matched by Colquitt County’s Devontay Ward, who scored 10 of the Packers’ 12 points in the quarter. Lowndes eventually shut down Ward for the remainder of the game, holding him to just six points across the final three quarters of play.

Along with Ward, Bo Grady Spence carried the Packers with 17 points.

The Vikings added to their lead in the second quarter, holding Colquitt County to just one field goal in the entire quarter. In fact, the Packers were held without a field goal for the final 7:34 of the half, managing just two free throws from Spence with 2:27 left.

During that time, the Vikings piled it on, using baskets from Caleb Austin, Willard, Kenny Moore and Justin Williams to build a 32-16 lead at halftime.

Colquitt County refused to go away, though. The Packers started the third quarter with a 6-0 run, which cut Lowndes’ lead to just 10 points. The Vikings quickly responded, using a 7-1 run to build a 16-point lead.

Once again, Colquitt County refused to go away, closing Lowndes’ lead to just nine points with 45 seconds to play in the third quarter. Luckily for Lowndes, Willard finished the quarter strong, scoring the final seven points of the frame to give LHS a 13-point lead, 48-35.

In the fourth quarter, Lowndes struggled to put Colquitt County away. Every time the Vikings built a double-digit lead, the Packers narrowed the gap, closing the deficit to just nine points with 2:12 remaining. That marked the final gasp of life for Colquitt County.

The Vikings finished the game on a 6-2 run, using free throws from Austin and Willard to ice the game.

Both Lowndes teams host crosstown rival Valdosta on Friday night. The girls game will tip-off at 6 p.m., with the boys game to follow at 7:30 p.m.