Lady Chiefs No Match for Lady Patriots
Mike Stanley, Jefferson County Post Sports
The Jefferson County Lady Patriots improved to 9-4 on the season with a dominating 69-13 win over Cherokee High School. Head Coach Rick Sinard says it was just part of the process, “We talk about playing every game like it’s the championship game.” He added, “You gotta play hard. You gotta play your game, and we played hard.”
It didn’t take long for that to be evident. Jefferson County raced out to a 22-0 lead after the first quarter. They would extend their run into the second quarter, building it to 25-0 before Cherokee would finally get on the board with 5:25 remaining in the half. As the run would continue, the Lady Pats led at intermission, 39-9. Jefferson County would outscore the Lady Chiefs 30-4 in the second half and cruise to a 69-13 win.
Everyone on the Lady Patriots’ roster would get into the scoring column on this night, and for Sinard it was pleasing to see, “It’s always great to be able to play all of your kids.” He added, “They work just as hard as everyone else in practice.”
While Sinard acknowledged the excitement of everyone contributing, as a coach he wants more, “When they get in, you want them to execute like the other groups do. You want them to work as hard as the other groups do.”
Julia Codispoti and Erin Essington would lead the Lady Pats in scoring with 11 each. The Jefferson County defensive pressure would create 31 turnovers in the contest, and they will need that many if they want to knock off Mt. Juliet in the Landair Ladies Classic in Greeneville December 27th. Mt. Juliet ousted the Lady Pats in last season’s state tournament, 65-37.
