Lady Panthers celebrate Senior Night with 47-38 win

Charles City’s Kayla Otey (20) and Cheyenne Davis (14) unleash a relentless trap on Windsor’s Taquesha Harris.

Andre' Jones photo

“Thank goodness for the second quarter.”

Those words, spoken by Charles City Lady Panther head coach VaShaun Otey, summarized the difference in what started out as a closely contested basketball game.

Powered by sophomore Adrienne Miles’ 14 second quarter points, Charles City’s Lady Panthers fought off a feisty Windsor Lady Dukes team to post a 47-38 Senior Night celebration.

After pregame ceremonies honoring seniors Myonka Boyd, Sara Whitehead, and Kayla Otey, the hosts found themselves in an early hole, thanks to Lady Duke Bridgette Walton’s six points in the first stanza and a Windsor defense looking to limit fast break opportunities en route to an early 8-4 lead.

But with 46 seconds remaining in the opening quarter, Cheyenne Davis provided the hosts with their first field goal of the game and a three-point play. Hailey Holmes’ lay-up would put the hosts up 9-8 transitioning into quarter two.

Charles City’s Keara Jones sandwiched fellow teammate Miles’ lay-up to cap off an 11-0 Lady Panther run by the six minute mark of the second quarter.

Miles commenced with her offensive takeover. Her lay-up countered a Jazzmine Bynum jumper for the hosts to lead 19-14. Miles would then drop in a wing jumper and force a steal and lay-up courtesy of the intense Lady Panther press to up the score to 23-14.

Miles answered Bynum’s stickback with a follow off a miss and then connected with a floater in the middle of the lane and a jumper from inside the corner to help propel the hosts to a 31-17 lead. Charles City outscored the visitors 22-9 in the frame.

After a third quarter stalemate, Windsor whittled away the hosts’ double-digit lead. Bynum’s bank shot off the glass with Tierra Rawls’ free throws cut Charles City’s lead to 35-27 with five minutes left in the game.

Windsor would have ample opportunities to continue to shrink the margin, but Otey would make a key steal from the press in front of the scorer’s table that eventually led to Holmes making a lay-up to put the game out of reach.

After the game, Otey spoke about his team’s mind-set heading into the contest.

“The team wanted the seniors to go out and have a good game,” he said. “We picked it up defensively in the second quarter after we started off slow again in the frame.”

And on Miles’ performance, Otey said he has been looking for that from her all year.

“She was very aggressive tonight,” he continued. “We tried to get her to be that way and tonight, she got off good shots, drove to the basket and played on the defensive end.”

The Lady Panthers (11-4, 5-2 Tri-Rivers) now travel for the rest of the year to close out district play. Miles led the team with her 14 points. Davis added nine while Jones and Jessica Hill scored six. Holmes finished with five, Whitehead four, and seniors Boyd and Otey chipped in with two and one, respectively.

Windsor (2-10, 1-5) was led in scoring by Taquesha Harris’ 11 and Walton’s 10.