NORTH VERNON
In a game of momentum swings, the team that strings together the biggest scoring streak almost always comes away victorious.
Jennings County’s girls basketball team used a pair of second-half rallies to come away with a 56-44 against Class A No. 8 Trinity Lutheran on Wednesday in the first-ever match up between the two programs.
In the first quarter, the Cougars (18-5) struggled to hit their shots against the Panthers’ 2-3 zone.
Trinity’s Savannah Harweger opened with a basket before the Panthers (7-14) went on a 7-2 run — capped by a 3-pointer from Addyson Kent — to lead 7-4 with 4:18 on the clock.
The teams traded baskets before the break, as the Panthers led 9-6.
In a tightly contested second quarter, neither team could get the edge.
Harweger hit a pair of free throws and Acton drained a 3-pointer to give the Cougars the lead back at 11-9 two minutes into the second quarter.
The teams traded the lead three times until Abby Hackman and Harweger got baskets to go to tie the game at 22 right before intermission.
In the final 16 minutes of play, the Panthers never trailed.
The Panthers came out of the break shooting well from the field, scoring nine unanswered points in the first three minutes of the second half. In the spree, Madi Skinner totaled five points.
A free throw by Hackman and 3-pointer by Jaynes stopped the momentum, with the Cougars down 33-26 by the 4:57 mark.
At the end of 24 minutes of play, the Panthers maintained the advantage at 48-30.
Almost identically to the start of the third quarter, the Panthers went on a 9-0 run to start the fourth.
Four points from Callie Wilder, a trey from Macy Roth and bucket from Alexus Brown put the Panthers up 47-30 with 2:57 left in the game.
In the final 2:37 of play, the Panthers were able to spread the Cougars out and hold on for the win.
The Panthers won the battle on the boards 26-18, collecting a handful of second-chance opportunities during the contest.
“We need to come out and match other teams’ intensity,” Cougars coach Mike Lang said. “We need to understand our roles. We need to come out and block out and win 50-50 balls. We talk about that in practice all the time. This time of year, it boils down to heart. Defense is about heart and desire. We need to get on the floor and get over loose balls.”
Hackman led Trinity with 15 points, Jaynes scored 11 and Harweger added 10. Kent and Roth each had 13 points to top the Panthers’ box score.
The Cougars will play a varsity-only game with Brown County on Saturday at the Bollinger Athletic Complex to conclude the regular season.