Girls fall short in quest for second title

The Lady Lions embarked on their journey to Sumter, S.C. to take part in their 3rd consecutive SCISA 1-A State Championship game. In 2009, the Lady Lions made it to the final and were defeated in that battle by a repeating veteran Wardlaw Academy team. In 2010, they got a chance to avenge that loss and took advantage of it by knocking Wardlaw Academy off of the SCISA 1-A throne. With a solid senior core graduating in 2010 the Lady Lions were set to rebuild with a young team and a lone senior in Shelbi Bottoms. Shelbi was named 1-A player of the year as a Junior during the 2010 title run. It became clear towards the end of January that the youthfulness of the team may not hinder a great postseason run. There were many close games and JICS, led by Shelbi Bottoms, came out on top of almost all of them. They finished the regular season as Region Champions for the 3rd straight year and won the Region Tournament by holding off a hungry Lowcountry Prep. team in the final game. JICS was awarded a #1 seed and the journey to Sumter began again. After a 2 point scare in the first round against Laurens Academy, the Lady Lions settled down and quietly dispatched their quarter and semi-final opponents Wardlaw Academy and Clarendon Hall. The road to the final was now paved. JICS would go once again to the SCISA 1-A State Championship. Their opponent, the same hungry Lowcountry Prep. that JICS had defeated in the Region final. Three times had the Lady Lions faced the Fightin Marlins of Lowcountry Prep. and twice they had come out on top of close battles.
Senior Shelbi Bottoms started off the scoring of the 2011 State Championship and JICS was on top 2- 0. Lowcountry showed right from the beginning that they came ready to answer baskets with a 3 point shot by Rachel Exum. Lowcountry went on top 4 7 when JICS Hannah Leschorn (SO.) drained a 3 with 35 seconds left in the first quarter to make it all knotted up at the end of the 1st , 7 7. Shelbi would score again early in the 2nd quarter and Kate Reeder (FR) would knock down a 3 point shot to give JICS a 12 7 lead. Lowcountry would pull within 3 12 9 when JICS Rebecca Duggan (SO) picked up her 3rd personal foul. Lowcountrys Exum would hit yet another 3 and the game was tied 12 12 with 4:53 remaining in the 2nd quarter. The Marlins would then be lifted by Senior Jenny Derrick and go on a 8 0 run to get ahead of JICS 12 20. Shlebi Bottoms scored to make the score 14 20, but LCP kept up the scoring gaining 4 more points to go ahead 14 24 with 1:47 left in the 2nd quarter. A Reeder 3 pointer and a Bottoms layup brought the Lady Lions of JICS within 6 with 20 seconds left. Another LCP Rachel Exum 3 pointer, this one at the buzzer gave LCP a nine point cushion going into the locker room at half-time, 20 29. JICS Rebecca Duggan came out in the third quarter and scored two straight unanswered baskets to get JICS back within 5 , 24 29. LCP Senior Jenny Derrick answered and JICS Rebecca Duggan picked up her important 4th foul with 2:48 left in the 3rd quarter. The Lady Lions and Marlins traded baskets for the rest of the 3rd quarter and Senior Shelbi Bottoms hit a layup as the buzzer was sounding to make the score 31 38, in favor of the Marlins. The 4th quarter started with LCPs McClary finding the net and JICS Kate Reeder hitting again from the 3 point land. Fellow Freshman Morgan Powers would hit two key baskets in the 4th quarter to get JICS within 4 twice, 36 40 and 38 42. A Reeder freethrow would pull JICS within 3 with 5:47 in the 4th quarter, but that would be as close as the Lady Lions could make it. Behind Jenny Derrick and McLean, LCP went on a 7 0 run and started to widen the gap, 39 49. A Duggan basket and Leschorn freethrow got JICS back within 42 49. Lowcountry Preps Rachel Exum ended the game with 6 straight points, 4 coming from freethrows. JICS Shelbi Bottoms, who earlier in the season broke 1,000 career points, would get her final basket as a Lady Lion with 53 seconds remaining in the 4th quarter. Lowcountry Prep. went on to win the 2011 SCISA 1-A State Championship by defeating JICS in their quest for the repeat, 45 57. Shelbi Bottoms ended the game with 17 points and was selected to the All-Tournament team. Freshman Kate Reeder had 14 points in the final and was also selected to the All-Tournament team. Rebecca Duggan had 6 points and Hannah Leschorn and Morgan Powers , 4 each to round out the Lions scorers. Coach Bethany Smith and the Lady Lions finished the 2010-2011 basketball season with an overall record of 21 - 4.

* NOTE: Senior Andrew Gooch of the JICS Varsity Boys Basketball team landed All-Tournament honors during the 2011 SCISA 1-A State Tournament. The Varsity Boys made it to the semifinals before falling in a close contest to the eventual State Champions - Christian Academy.
-- Jeremy Schwartz