The Bogue Chitto Lady Cats overcame a slow first half and exploded in the second half to defeat West Lowndes by a score of 61-43.

The win advances Bogue Chitto to the quarterfinals of the 1A state playoffs. They’ll face Pine Grove at the Jackson Coliseum Thursday. The win continues the impressive winning streak to 14 games for the Lady Cats and moves them to 19-10 overall.

Both teams came into the ballgame knowing that the winner goes to the big house and the loser goes home. The Lady Panthers of West Lowndes kept an even pace with the Lady Cats to start the game off, as the first quarter ended with the score tied at 10.

The second quarter was more of the same as Bogue Chitto took a slim 20-18 lead going into halftime.

The Lady Cats came out of the locker room with a different intensity and it showed on the scoreboard. Bogue Chitto opened the third quarter on a 21-2 run to go up 41-20. The Lady Cats would cap off a 20-point fourth quarter to end the ballgame and punched their ticket to Jackson for the second year in a row.

“We started off sloppy in the first half, but we regrouped in the second half,” Bogue Chitto head coach Christi Terrell said. “We came out and got easy shots on offensive. The girls played so hard and I’m extremely proud of them. They have worked so hard this season.”

“It took a little while for us to find our rhythm, but it was a team effort tonight,” senior guard Terrah Nelson said. “I am so proud of my teammates. I’m super thankful to get the experience this with them and to see our hard work pay off.”

Four players for Bogue Chitto scored in double figures on the night. Senior guard Taneshia May had a monster game as she scored a game-high 25 points and reeled in 15 rebounds as well. Senior guard Chyna Collins also played well for the Lady Cats with 10 points and five rebounds. Sophomore Karly Leake contributed with 10 points and six rebounds and senior guard Charysma Collins contributed with 10 points, seven rebounds and two assists. Nelson contributed with six points, seven assists, four rebounds and two steals.

Junior guard Edmariah Sherrod led the Lady Panthers in scoring with 17 points. Freshman guard Marvashia Seals followed up by scoring 13 points.

Bogue Chitto will face a tough task trying to take down a dominant Pine Grove team that owns a 27-6 overall record. Tipoff is set for 9 a.m. on Thursday at the Mississippi Coliseum.