Saint Jo
The Saint Jo Lady Panthers wrapped up the first round of district play last week with wins against Bellevue and Forestburg to stay undefeated and in first place.
The Lady Panthers won against the Lady Eagles 57-55 in a close game before winning at the Lady Horns gym 61-28.
Saint Jo entered the week with a 3-0 record and played a Bellevue team that also entered the game undefeated in district as well.
Both teams play an up-tempo type of style on offense and defense that made it an exciting game from start to finish. With these being the best two teams in the district, it just seemed to come down to who had more gas in the tank at the end.
For most of the game, it was the Lady Eagles as they led 16-12 after the first quarter, 30-26 at halftime and 48-41 heading into the fourth quarter.
The final period saw Saint Jo finally catch up and tie the game early on before it was back and forth down the stretch.
With the score tied at 55-55 with 25 seconds left, the Lady Panthers got the ball to backup post player Kamron Skidmore who put in a quick shot near the basket to put Saint Jo up for good as it won 57-55.
The Lady Panthers then closed out the first round of district with a game at Forestburg on Friday that was not as close.
Saint Jo beat the Lady Horns 61-28.

Bellevue
The Bellevue Lady Eagles battled through illness last week to go 1-1 in district against Saint Jo and Prairie Valley.
The Lady Eagles lost a close game against the district’s top team Saint Jo 57-55 before rebounding to beat Prairie Valley 55-25.
Bellevue came into the week with an undefeated record as it played last year’s district champ Saint Jo on the road on Jan. 14.
Just like the Lady Eagles, the Lady Panthers like to employ full-court pressure style defenses and looks to push the ball in transition any opportunity it gets. While Bellevue had several of its key players dealing with illness, the Lady Eagles played through it to give the game their best shot.
Bellevue grabbed the lead early and seemed to control the game for the majority of the contest. The Lady Eagles led 16-12 after the first quarter 30-26 at halftime and 48-41 at the end of the third quarter. At several times Bellevue had extended it lead to double-digits, but just could not shake Saint Jo.
The Lady Panthers came back in the fourth quarter to tie up the score early at 48-48. From there both teams had trouble scoring and pulling away as every basket felt like pulling teeth.
Saint Jo took its first lead, but then Chloe Broussard made a 3-pointer to give Bellevue back the lead. Brittany Gill then made a tough floater and scored in transition to keep the Lady Eagles ahead until a clutch 3-pointer from the Lady Eagle tied the game up with 1:32 left.
With less than 30 seconds left in the game, Saint Jo took the lead on quick post up basket. Bellevue had a chance to either tie or take the lead, but the 3-point shot did not go in as the Lady Eagles lost 57-55.
It was a disappoint outcome for a game that could have put Bellevue in first place, but the Lady Eagles bounced back on Friday with a win at home against Prairie Valley.
Bellevue jumped out to a 32-4 lead in the first quarter and was able to coast to an easy win from there as it pulled back its press defense. The Lady Eagles won 55-25 in the end.

Nocona
The Nocona Lady Indians picked up two more blowout wins last week against Archer City and Electra to stay undefeated in district play.
The Lady Indians beat the Lady Cats 81-35 and the Lady Tigers 77-21.
Nocona came into the week confident, having last lost a district game in 2019 and having already beaten both teams easily the first time.
On Jan. 14 the team played Archer City and easily won 81-35.
The most interesting thing was Meg Meekins being within scratching distance of breaking the school single-game scoring record.
She came up three points short, scoring a career-high 43 points.
Friday’s game against Electra was not much closer. The Lady Indians won 77-21.

Forestburg
The Forestburg Lady Horns won one game and lost the other last week in district play.
The Lady Horns beat Midway on Jan. 14, 49-41, before losing to Saint Jo on Friday 61-28.
Forestburg came into the week with a 1-1 record and was hoping to shake off a tough loss in its previous game against Bellevue.
The Lady Horns played a close game against the Lady Falcons. Forestburg led 19-17 at halftime and 32-30 heading into the final period.
The Lady Horns made enough of their free throws in the fourth quarter to win comfortably enough after three close quarters, 49-41.
Unfortunately, Friday’s home game against undefeated Saint Jo did not go well. The Lady Panthers, fresh from beating second place Bellevue, won 61-28 against Forestburg.

Prairie Valley
The Prairie Valley Lady Bulldogs lost a tough game at Bellevue on Friday last week.
The Lady Eagles won 55-25, but the Lady Bulldogs played well down the stretch after starting off the game not well.
Prairie Valley came into the game 0-3 district record, but had an extra day to prepare for the game against a Bellevue team that was sitting in second place in the standings.
The tough and physical full-court press from the Lady Eagles did a number on the Lady Bulldogs in the first quarter, up 32-4.
When the press was called off, this allowed Prairie Valley to play better as it outscored Bellevue 12-4 in the second quarter. Unfortunately, fatigue and the Lady Eagles playing better defense limited the Lady Bulldogs to nine points in the second half while Prairie Valley limited Bellevue to 21 points.
The Lady Eagles won 55-25.

To read the full story, pick up a copy of the weekly edition of the Bowie News.

For pictures from the Saint Jo vs Bellevue game, click here https://www.dotphoto.com/go.asp?l=bnews1&AID=6872450&T=1