The Lady Owls got matched up with the high-powered Class 4A Jennings County Panthers in the opening round of the sectional.

Seymour will face the Panthers 7 p.m. Tuesday at Floyd Central High School in Floyds Knobs.

The winner of the contest will face Jeffersonville at 6 p.m. Friday.

Owls head coach Jason Longmeier spoke about the upcoming matchup with the Panthers.

“We have to play one of our best games of the year both offensively and defensively on Tuesday night,” he said. “Offensively, they have a lot of players that are capable of scoring, and defensively, they are very solid. They are one of the top teams in the state, and we look forward to the challenge.”

The Owls previously faced off with the Panthers on Dec. 5 at Jennings County, dropping the matchup 66-36 to the 2023-24 Hoosier Hills Conference champions.

The Panthers went 6-0 in conference play this season and are ranked No. 6 in the state throughout all classes in girls basketball, compiling a record of 21-3.

Jennings is led by Michigan State recruit and all-state candidate Juliann Woodard, who’s averaging 15.8 points and 10.5 rebounds per game. She also recently set the Panthers’ all-time career scoring record.

Seymour ended the regular season with an 11-11 record, including 2-6 in the HHC; however, the Owls are on a two-game winning streak after downing Charlestown and dominating New Albany.

They’re led by seniors Kendall Sterling and Journee Brown, who also have college basketball in their futures. Sterling is continuing her academic and athletic career at Thomas More University in Kentucky, and Brown is staying in-state, going to Taylor University to play for the Trojans.

Sterling is averaging 14.9 points per game along with 6.3 rebounds and 5.5 assists and 2 steals. Brown is averaging 13.6 ppg and 6.5 rpg and shooting 54.4% from the field.

Longmeier spoke about some keys for the Owls if they want to pull out a victory.

“We have to control the ball. We have to shorten the game with great offensive possessions,” he said. “We can’t turn the ball over and have to give ourselves a chance for a good shot every possession. Defensively, we need to try to take away two of their top three players. We have to be locked in as a group on the defensive end.”

Other teams in the Floyd Central Sectional 15 include Bedford North Lawrence, Silver Creek, New Albany and the host school.

Seymour will look to secure its first sectional title since 2008. That team also opened the postseason against Jennings County and defeated the Panthers, Floyd Central and BNL to secure the title. They then fell in the opening round of the regional to Columbus East.

The semifinals take place at 6 and 7:30 p.m. Friday, and the sectional final is at 7:30 p.m. Saturday.