Bogue Chitto’s Lady Bobcats upset the Lady Yellow Jackets of Enterprise 41-33 Tuesday night to secure the No. 4 seed in the Region 7-2A tournament.

The teams traded the lead in an evenly fought three quarters before the Lady Bobcats’ defense stepped up late in the third quarter, doing damage to the Enterprise offense and securing a Bogue Chitto victory.

“Our defense was there, offensively we kind a stumbled a little bit but we got the shots in and made our free throws,” said Lady Bobcats junior Cheyenne Hall.

Although the Lady Cats scored the first basket of the game, the first period saw ties and lead changes, with Enterprise senior Jana Nations leading the Lady Yellow Jackets to a 9-8 lead after one.

The she-jackets started off the second quarter by extending their lead, as senior Eden Ward nailed a deuce. The Lady Cats managed to tie the game and take the lead.

“I think in the first half we kicked it off to a bad start. We made a lot of mistakes,” said Bogue Chitto senior Lineka Newson. “In the second half we came out strong, with strong offense and defense.”

The lead change didn’t last very long, as senior Carlee Nations managed to steal the ball and put her team back in front. Hitting a three-pointer, junior Britany Barnett kept the Lady Jackets on top to lead 19-15 at half time.

The Lady Bobcats opened the second half making a two-pointer, and eventually managed to tie up the game and take the lead. The she-cats’ defense stepped up in the final minutes of the third, causing turnovers, to separate themselves from the Lady Jackets. Bogue Chutto led 28-20 after three full quarters.

“We played really good team ball in the first half. Second half, coming out, we played good hustle,” said Lady Bobcats freshman Kayci Beth Wallace.

The Lady Cats’ offense picked up where their defense left off in the third, as they began pulling away from the Lady Yellow Jackets.

With the final two minutes clicking away, the Lady Jackets fought hard to get back into the game, trailing 36-30. The Lady Cats had just enough momentum left to carry themselves to a 41-33 win.

“We shot 20 percent from the field. Bogue Chitto shot 60 percent, and we were 7-18 from the free throw line,” said Lady Jackets coach Shane Adams. “You can’t shoot the ball that poorly and expect to be successful, but that has been a problem for us all year. The girls’ effort was great, and I’m proud of them. They played hard the whole game and fought to get back into the game. We just couldn’t make the shots when we needed to.”

Bogue Chitto had two players reach double digits. Newson and junior Karly Leake each had 10 points. Hall netted six points. Wallace made five points. Junior Baileigh Jackson shot four points. Sophomore Kamilah Clay also shot four points. Senior Kylie Hux finished with two points.

The Lady Yellow Jackets had one player shoot double digits. Senior Jana Nations led with 11 points, and twin sister Carlee Nations followed with nine points. Senior Monisha Pendleton netted six points. Junior Britany Barnett hit three points. Senior Eden Ward and fresman Kaylie Burgess finished with two points.

Bogue Chitto will take on the West Lincoln Lady Bears tonight in the second round of the Region 7-2A tournament.

Story by Dave Linton