MOULTRIE – The Colquitt County sixth- and seventh-grade Lady Packer girls basketball team finished its season Tuesday on the wrong end of a lopsided 45-9 loss at Newbern Middle School.
Still, the youngest Lady Packers finished the season as the runners-up in the Southwest Georgia Middle School “Big Six” conference.
The team, composed of seventh-graders Nina and Niya Daniels, Makayla Knight, Makairi James, Skyler Jenkins, D’Kyra Jones, Mea Rodriguez, Caitlyn Spralding, Ra’Kyja Sumlin and sixth-graders Sadie-Laurel Cato, Ruby Demott, Paola Mezquite and Laila Myrick, had a rough start to the season, but showed great improvement down the stretch.
“We started the season 1-3 and then we were 2-4,” coach Jon Scroggins said. “Coach (James) Stancil and I liked our team, we just didn’t have much experience.
“But these girls were eager to learn and willing to work. There was no guarantee that it would pay off the way we wanted it to, but it did. We had a great season.”
The young Lady Packers lost their regular season matchup to Newbern on November 11, and didn’t lose again until Tuesday. They ran through Pine Grove and Thomas County Central by large margins, then faced a once-beaten Coffee team on December 5 and won that showdown 20-13.
“That was a pivotal moment for us,” Scroggins said. “It was a toughness check. Points were hard to come by, so we had to make sure we played defense at a high level and we did. I was thrilled with our result that day.”
The youngest Lady Packer team finished the regular season tied for second place in the conference and by virtue of having the fewest points allowed, Colquitt was awarded the second seed in the postseason tournament. The Lady Packers then defeated Thomas County Central again in the first round of the playoffs to earn a rematch against the Hahira squad that won their regular-season matchup 16-3.
The playoff result was much different, with the Lady Packers winning 30-10 to advance to the final.
“These girls have come a long way already,” Scroggins said. “But I’m looking forward to working with these sixth- graders again next year and I can’t wait to see how the seventh graders continue to develop and grow as players and citizens.
“If these young student-athletes continue to work and improve, their potential is unlimited. The future of Colquitt County girls basketball is very bright!”