GREENE COUNTY
Over the weekend, the Lake Oconee Academy girls’ basketball team dropped its first region game of the season to the Towns County Lady Indians.
The Saturday afternoon contest was close through all four quarters, but the Lady Titans were eventually defeated 52-49 in Hiawassee.
The loss marked the program’s first region loss since Jan. 25, 2020, when Lake Oconee Academy was defeated by Georgia Military College Prep (GMC Prep) before region realignment came the year after. Since moving from Class 1A Region 7 to Class 1A Region 8, this was the Lady Titans’ first area loss.
Head coach Savannah Soles told the Lake Oconee News that the Lady Indians played a competitive game and executed their game plan very well.
“Overall, I think Towns County executed its game plan perfectly. They had us very much scouted out and played to our weaknesses,” Soles said. “They’ve got great players around the perimeter, and they’ve got 6-footers in the lineup. We had to come in ready to play, but we kind of just walked in expecting to win, and that’s not what happened.”
For a team that has consistently kept opponents from scoring, Lake Oconee Academy’s defense didn’t play up to its usual standard.
Before the Towns County game, the Lady Titans were only allowing about 35 points per game; however, the team gave up 17 more to the Lady Indians. It was only the second contest of the season that Lake Oconee Academy allowed an opponent to score over 50 points.
Three of Towns County’s players ended the game with double-digit scoring totals and found success because of ball movement. The Lady Titans’ fullcourt press was only able to do so much, and the Lady Indians were able to rack up 16 assists compared to only 10 turnovers.
Soles believes her team will need to do a better job of applying more pressure on the defensive end as the season goes on.
“They moved the ball well around our zone and took advantage when some of our girls went out with foul trouble,” Soles said. “We just didn’t execute. We stood around and looked a little lost. We told the girls afterward that we’ll have to step it up as we get closer to the season-ending.”
On the offensive end, Lake Oconee Academy also struggled more than it usually does. The Lady Titans usually score almost 60 points per game on average but were held to 11 less than that by the Lady Indians.
Even after the unexpected loss, the Lady Titans still control their own destiny in Region 8, and Soles is confident that her girls will respond well in the team’s next stretch of games.
“Our girls are extremely motivated. We hit it pretty hard at practice on Monday just to remind them we’ve still got things to play for,” Soles said. “I told them that the loss would be good for us. It could be a turning point in our season if we play the rest of the year motivated.”
Looking ahead, Lake Oconee Academy will play five more games before the regular season ends and the postseason begins.
The first weekend in February will be a pivotal moment for Soles’ squad. The Lady Titans will have to travel across town to Greene County to take on the Tigers on Feb. 3 and will host the rematch against the Lady Indians the day after.