BOGUE CHITTO – The Bogue Chitto Lady Cats were Thursday night in the opening round of the Class 1A State Playoffs as they knocked off the French Camp Lady Panthers 58-39 in girls action at the Bobcat Palace.

“I am very proud of my girls for getting the win,” said BC coach Christi Terrell. “In the first half, we shot the ball really terrible, but our defensive pressure helped us stay in the game.

“In the second half, the girls played a lot better as everyone stepped up and did what was needed to get the win,” added Terrell. “I am really pleased to get the win, but now we must get ready for Dexter.”

The Lady Cats (24-6) will be in action tonight as they prepare to travel to Tylertown to face the Dexter Lady Bulldogs in the second round of the State Playoffs. Game time is at 7 p.m.

Bogue Chitto 58, French Camp 39 

In the first half of action, the Lady Cats and the Lady Panthers battled in a close contest as French Camp managed to capture a 12-9 lead after one quarter of action.

In the second quarter, the Lady Cats turned up the heat defensively on the Lady Panthers as both teams continued to struggle to score offensively. Both teams ended up scoring six points apiece as French Camp carried a 18-15 lead into halftime.

In the second half, the Lady Cats came out strong, after receiving a halftime speech from Coach Terrell, and quickly dominated French Camp from the start as they exploded with a 24-7 run to captured the lead at 39-25 after three quarters of action.

In the fourth quarter, both teams shot the ball well offensively, but Bogue Chitto continued to overpowered the Lady Panthers with their strong defensive pressure and outscored French Camp 19-14 to collect the win.

The Lady Cats had four players to score in double figures as junior guard Zariah Matthews led the charge with 15 points, five rebounds and four assists. Shakirianna Jefferson chipped in with 13 points, nine rebounds and five steals. Karlie Williams and Terrah Nelson contributed 10 points each. Lauren McCaffery was the leader on the boards with 12 rebounds and scored five points. TaNeshia May also helped on the boards with nine rebounds and scored two points.

Widon Toto was the top scorer for the Lady Panthers of French Camp with 12 points. Carlin West provided 10 points. Ana Grace Mackenzie added nine points.