MERIDIAN – As the non-district schedule winds down, the Meridian Lady Jacket girls basketball team built some momentum with a hard-fought 45-39 victory over Itasca last Friday at Yellowjacket Gymnasium.
With senior leading scorer Dakota Cassidy still out with an ankle injury, seniors Jada Crawford and Reese Errington stepped up to lead Meridian. The Lady Jackets jumped out to an early 12-2 first quarter lead, but Itasca answered in the second period to pull within two points going into halftime. Meridian stormed back in the third, outscoring the Lady Wampus Cats, 14-9, in the third, then hung on for the win.
“The girls started fast and came out strong in the third quarter,” Meridian girls basketball head coach Jill Kendall said. “We are hoping to get Dakota back from her injury before we take on Hico on Friday.”
Crawford finished with a team-high 14 points and six rebounds, followed by Errington with 12 points, six boards, a team-high four assists and three steals.
The Lady Jackets (13-8) close out the non-district schedule on the road against Frost today at 6:15 p.m. before opening District 10-2A play in Hico against the Class 2A’s 15th-ranked Lady Tigers (17-3) at 6:15 p.m. Friday.
“Hico is a well-coached team that has several good experienced players on their team,” Kendall said. “Playing in Hico is always tough and us not being completely recovered from injuries is going to make it difficult. But it’s not impossible for us to come home with a win. It will be a good matchup.”
Photos by SIMONE WICHERS-VOSS
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