By PATRICK CASEY
Friday night marked a District 1 showdown for the Paxton Lady Bobcats against the Ponce de Leon Lady Pirates while the boys’ contest set the stage for a Malone-Paxton showdown on Dec. 7.
Paxton hosted and captured both junior varsity and varsity contests as the girls and boys varsity teams remained unscathed on the 2015-16 season with Jeff Bradley’s club earning a 70-36 win while Andrew Norris’ squad came from behind to earn a 43-37 victory.
Paxton jumped out to a 15-9 lead in the girls’ contest as Katie Sebastian and Cortni McKee each scored five points in the first quarter as the up-tempo affair saw the host squad get several offensive rebounds to build an early lead.
The tempo slowed in the second quarter as each squad’s defense made adjustments with Paxton taking a 21-17 lead into the locker room on 9-of-24 shooting from the field. The Bobcats could have had a bigger lead but 2-of-9 shooting from the charity stripe allowed the Pirates to trim a couple of points off of the first quarter lead.
Ponce de Leon connected on only 7-of-24 shots from the field to go with 2-of-4 from the free throw line as nine team fouls against the visiting team caused some substitution issues for long-time head coach Tim Alford.
The Pirates turned the momentum at the start of the third quarter as Paxton began the second half ice-cold from the perimeter, hitting only 4-of-15 shots while committing six turnovers. Micala Fisanick scored five of her 13 points during that period while Jordan Lee added four of her six points during a run that put PDL up by nine points.
Paxton did not go quietly, however, as Sebastian drilled a three-point shot late in the third with McKee and Payton Malloy adding baskets to get the host squad back within one point, trailing only 31-30 entering the fourth quarter.
Genesis Long went to work in the fourth quarter, running the Bobcats offense while scoring six of her 10 points over the final eight minutes despite playing with a turned ankle suffered during the period. Cassidy Brazile provided a pair of baskets in the paint as the Bobcats finally overcame their woes at the free throw line to hit 5-of-6 shots from the charity stripe to pull away for a 43-37 victory.
PDL’s chances of a win in Paxton got away from the team as poor shooting from the field, just 2-of-15 in the final quarter, and foul trouble for guard Taylor West ended the visitor’s 8-0 start to the regular season. West finished with nine points and Chambleigh Webster added seven as the Pirates(8-1, 5-1 district) finished the game 13-of-51 from the field and 9-of-15 at the free throw line with 13 turnovers.
Paxton(7-0, 4-0 district) had Sebastian end the night with 12 points while Long scored 10 and McKee eight. The Bobcats were 17-of-50 from the field and 7-of-17 from the line while suffering 15 turnovers.
The Paxton boys squad dominated from the outset, leading 26-9 after the first quarter and 37-15 at intermission. Junior Zach Varnum scored 11 of his 15 points in the first half with Jack Hamilton adding 15 points and Garrett Bodie 14 in a 70-36 decision.
Ponce de Leon got 12 points from Nick Price and were hurt by the absence of Koby Townsend, who missed the game with a leg injury.
Jeff Bradley was able to play deep into his bench as the Bobcats triggered the Mercy Rule with three minutes left in the third quarter as the squad held a 60-36 lead after 24 minutes of play.
Paxton(7-0, 4-0 district) hit 27-of-55 from the field and 5-of-10 from the free throw line in staying unbeaten on the year. PDL(1-7, 0-5 district) connected on 12-of-37 from the floor and just 6-of-15 from the line for head coach Frankie Townsend.
Game Notes: The Paxton girls hold a 27-7 mark against PDL in the last 34 meetings between the two clubs, dating back to the 1991-92 season. PDL coach Tim Alford holds a record of 448-163 at PDL with a career mark of 461-176. Like most Panhandle clubs, Alford has struggled against the Paxton girls, holding a mark of 7-18 versus the Bobcats. Paxton won the junior varsity girls game 32-15 and the JV boys contest 49-21. Paxton coach Jeff Bradley is in his 18th season as varsity head coach at Paxton and holds a mark of 351-137 in that time. Bradley holds a 13-9 mark against PDL and is 6-4 at home versus the Pirates. Paxton is 18-14 against PDL in boys basketball since the 1993-94 season. The Paxton girls are 124-14 at home over the last 11+ seasons while the boys are 118-21 in that same time frame.
