MOULTRIE — After defeating Camden County by 21 points on Friday its Region 1-7A opener, the Colquitt County girls basketball team managed just 22 points in its first three quarters the next night and lost at Richmond Hill 37-36.

Colquitt County’s boys dropped both of their games to their region opponents to the east, falling 56-43 to Camden County and 46-29 to Richmond Hill.

The Lady Packers are 8-6 overall. Colquitt County’s home games against Tift County scheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 10, have been postponed.

After her team’s first two region games of the season, Lady Packers coach Rondesha Williams characterized her team as “very inconsistent.”

“We played four quarters Friday night,” she said of the 49-28 win over Camden County. “Saturday we played one quarter and lost by one.”

Colquitt had three players score in double-digits against Camden County, with Amareyia Knighton getting 15 and Carliss Johnson and D’Zeriyah Polite each putting up 13.

Ameris Johnson and Jamya Moore each had four in a game the Lady Packers won easily.

It was a different story the next night at Richmond Hill.

Colquitt scored seven points in the first quarter, six in the second and nine in the third to trail by 10 heading into the final eight minutes.

The Lady Packers outscored their host 14-5 in the final quarter, but still came up a point short.

“We were not the same team from Friday night,” Williams said.

Knighton again led the team in scoring against Richmond Hill with 11 points.

Polite had nine; Moore had seven; Carliss Johnson had five; Ameris Johnson put in three; and Nyleigha Knighton had a free throw.

The Lady Packers opened the 2023 portion of its schedule on Jan. 3 with a 57-42 home loss to Deerfield-Windsor.

The Colquitt girls scored just two points in the second quarter, were down by 23 at the half and, despite cutting their deficit to nine twice in the fourth quarter, they could not catch the Lady Knights.

Not that Deerfield-Windsor is not a solid opponent.

The Lady Knights raised their record to 10-1 and are ranked No. 1 in the Georgia Independent Athletic Association. Their only loss was by a 61-58 score to Monroe in the final game of the Deerfield-Windsor Christmas Classic.

But one game after scoring 63 points in a victory over a fine Turner County team in the final game of the Vereen Christmas Classic, the Lady Packers managed just three baskets in the first half against Deerfield and trailed 31-8 as they headed to the locker room.

Down by 16 heading into the final quarter, Colquitt closed to within nine on a pair of Amareyia Knighton free throws with 4:01 left in the game and again to within nine on another Knighton free throw with 2:04 remaining.

But the Lady Knights got a pair of baskets and four free throws in the final 52 seconds to get the win.

Knighton led the Lady Packers with 17 points, including 13 after intermission as Colquitt tried to make a game of it.

Polite had 10, Carliss Johnson added seven, Moore had five and Jermani Triplett added a basket.

The young Colquitt County boys fall to 1-9 on the season after the losses to Camden County and Richmond Hill.

In Kingsland against Camden County, the Packers got 11 points from I’marius Bussie and 10 from Calvin Washington.

Jakari Byrd added seven, Cason Harden had five, Tyshon Reed and Zay Williams each had four and Luke Brogden added two.

The game was closer than the final score might indicate with the Packers close with five minutes to play.

“We’ve got to learn to finish games,” coach Andy Harden said.

The Packers were without three players for the game against Richmond Hill the following night and despite a season-high 19 points by Cason Harden, the Packers could not make a game of it late.

Despite the team’s record, Andy Harden said he thinks the program’s future “is very, very bright.”

“We are going to be OK the more experience these guys get,” he said. “They are going to get nothing but better.”

Colquitt County’s next region games will be on Saturday, Jan. 14, at Valdosta.

Valdosta’s girls are 2-0 in the region after defeating Richmond Hill and Camden County.

Valdosta’s boys are 1-1.