Basketball season gets more exciting in January as district play begins. Chester County faced two of its biggest rivals last week as they traveled to South Side Tuesday night and McNairy Central Friday night. The Eagles and Lady Eagles both struggled against South Side with the girls losing 10-60 and the boys falling 43-70. Lady Eagles The Eaglettes were only able to put two points on the scoreboard in the first quarter on a shot by JuJu Prather while the Lady Hawks had put up 17 mid-ways through the first quarter. By the end of the quarter Chester County was down 28-2. South Side was able to stretch its lead in the second, adding 14 additional points while the Lady Eagles were only able to score three additional points. At the intermission the score was 42-5. The Eaglettes were only able to add a free throw in the third as they continued to miss the basket and turn the ball over. Going into the last quarter, South Side was on top 57-6. When the final buzzer sounded Chester County only put 10 points on the board. Kloe Taylor and Brooke Ketchum scored 4 apiece and JuJu Prather added 2.
Eagles In the night cap the Eagles started out strong with back-to-back 3-pointers by Christian Halford and Jayce Goff. At the end of the first frame Chester County was on top 13-7. The Eagles missed several shots in the second and gave up the lead at intermission, trailing 20-24. The third quarter was not any kinder to the Eagles. They continued to miss crucial shots and got into foul trouble while the Hawks were finding the basket and led at the end of the quarter 46-26. Turnovers plagued the Eagles in the final quarter while South Side continued to increase their margin. At the buzzer Chester County came up on the losing end 43-70. Scoring for Chester County were Aiden Welch with 16; Christian Halford with 9, including two 3-pointers; Jayden Williams with 5; Jayce Goff with a 3-pointer; Markel Fulton, Peyton Barham and Jordan Hunt had 2 apiece. Chester County fared better Friday night against McNairy. The boys played a hard-fought game and came out on top with their first district win 58-42. However, the Lady Eagles were handed their second district loss 18-41. Lady Eagles Brooke Ketchum started off the night with a basket, followed by 2 points by JuJu Prather. McNairy got on the board and was able to put up 17 by the end of the quarter. Chester County was down 4-13 going into the second.
The Lady Eagles were having trouble keeping possession of the ball and were only able to put up 5 points before halftime, down 9-22. Turnovers and missed shots plagued the Eaglettes in the third, adding only 3 points to the scoreboard. The quarter ended with the Lady Eagles down 12-30. The Lady Bobcats outscored the Eaglettes in the final quarter 11-6 with a final score of 41-18, bringing their season record 5-14. Brooke Ketchum led the Eaglettes with 8 points, followed by: JuJu Prather with 5; Kloe Taylor with 3 and Esther Osburn with 2. Eagles Coach Tarius Johnson’s Eagles hit the hardwood in the Round House Friday night at McNairy Central, determined to add a district win to its record. The Eagles were first on the scoreboard on a basket by Aiden Welch, followed by a 3-pointer by Jayce Goff. Christian Halford added another trey in the first, leading 18-7 at the end of the quarter. The boys in blue continued to add to their lead in the second going into the locker room up 28-18. The Eagles came out in the third and stretched their lead to 13 points, on top 39-26 by the end of the quarter. The Eagles protected their lead in the final quarter, outscoring the Bobcats 19-16 with a final score of 58-42. The Eagles record in now 5-12. Aiden Welch and Jayden Williams led the scoring with 20 points each. Jayce Goff followed with 8; Christian Halford with 4 and Christian Swift with 3.
