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Quitman Ends Game on 16-5 Run to Win Title

QUITMAN ENDS GAME ON 16-5 RUN TO WIN TITLE

Gina Skelton took off her three state championship rings at her first team meeting as Quitman's head coach four years ago. She swore she wouldn’t wear them again until she won one at her new school. On Thursday night, she put them back on and will add another. Skelton’s Lady Panthers pulled away late with a 16-0 run and claimed the school’s first basketball championship with a 58-48 victory over Florence in the Class 4A final. “I have to give the glory to God,” Skelton said. “I’ve been blessed with great assistants and great players. He gives them the talent, and we just try to do what we can to get the best out of them.” And that’s exactly what she did Thursday. Dandy Dozen guard Shonte Hailes poured in 24 points and led Quitman (27-6) with 12 rebounds. The senior and Southern Miss commitment made all nine of her shots from the floor and drained her only 3-point attempt. Chequira Bonner, another senior, turned in a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. The Lady Panthers played smart basketball. They shot 55 percent from the floor and recorded assists on 12 of their 23 buckets. “We’ve worked since before the season started on moving the ball and getting good shots,” Hailes said. “So when we got into this game tonight, we just stuck to what worked.” While Quitman went for quality in their shot selection, Florence (24-5) went for quantity. The Lady Eagles took a combined 62 shots from the floor — 20 more than Quitman — but made just 29 percent of them. Quitman took a 13-9 lead into the first break, but Florence played them even in the second quarter. Each time the Lady Panthers stretched their lead to five or six points, Florence guards Danyelle Lewis and Tyjunna Dixon were there with a bucket to keep it close. After trailing by four at the half, Florence made their move at the end of the third quarter. Lewis swished a three-pointer just before the buzzer to cut the Quitman lead to 40-39. Florence even briefly took a lead about a minute into the fourth quarter on a running floater by Dixon that put the Lady Eagles on top 43-41. It was their first lead since the opening minute of the game, but it was short-lived. Hailes got hot and Quitman responded with a 16-5 run over the final six minutes. The senior scored 10 of her 24 points, blocked one shot and altered two more and came away with a steal during the run. “She did what great players do — she took over the game,” Skelton said. “(Lewis) was hurting us, and we usually try to protect Hailes and Bonner from fouls, but she came up to me and said, ‘Coach, I want her.’ “Well, she got her.” Lewis hit one more 3 in the game’s final minute, but it was far out of reach by then. When the final whistle blew, the Quitman players all converged around the four seniors — Hailes, Bonner, Sendreca Howard and Amber McKenzie — the only four players left who were in the room when Skelton took her rings off four years ago. “We finally got her one after four long years,” McKenzie said. “And it feels great.”

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