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By Su Ann Bird

 

AMERICUS – The South Georgia Technical College Lady Jets clinched a 20-game winning season for first year head coach Jason Carpenter Saturday with an impressive 88 – 64 win over the Albany Technical College Lady Titans.  However, the Jets were not so fortunate as they dropped an 82 – 62 decision to the Titans in the second half of the Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association (GCAA) double-header.

“Breaking the 20 wins threshold is an accomplishment to be proud of any year in college basketball and especially so this year given our early season struggles,” said SGTC Athletic Director and Lady Jets head coach Jason Carpenter.  “Our team has continued to improve through the season and we are playing our best basketball now when it matters most.”

The Lady Jets had to come from behind to take the 24-point victory over Albany Tech Saturday.  Albany Tech was up 26 – 15 at the end of the first quarter but the Lady Jets rallied in the second quarter to outscore the Lady Titans 24 – 9 and take a 39 – 35 lead at the end of the first half.

The Lady Jets continued to outscore Albany Tech in the second half, 49 – 29, to secure the 88 – 64 victory and move to 20 – 9 overall and 13 – 4 in the conference.  South Georgia Tech is currently second in the GCAA behind East Georgia at 17 – 0.  Central Georgia Tech is in third place with a 12 – 5 record and Albany Tech is in fourth place at 8 – 9 in the GCAA.  The Lady Jets will face the unbeaten East Georgia College Bobcats at home on Saturday at 1 p.m.

Freshman guard Mio Sakano and sophomore center Maeva Fotsa were tied for top scoring honors with 17 points each.  Fotsa had a double-double night with her 17 points and 16 rebounds to lead the team on the boards.  Sakano had eight assists and two rebounds in addition to her 17 points.

Three other Lady Jets were in double-digits with Greta Carollo tossing in 16 points.  She was four of five from the three-point line.  She also had eight rebounds.  Vera Gunaydin scored 14 points for the Lady Jets and Enola Papin had 13.  Papin was also four of five from the three-point line on the night and was four of four in the first half.

Isabel De Souza Bueno walked away with seven points for the Lady Jets and then Maria Favero and Destiny Bishop closed out the scoring with two points each.

 

Following the 24-point victory by the Lady Jets, the Jets came out and played a very good first half against the top-ranked Albany Tech Titans.  The Jets were tied at 29 – 29 with 1:07 remaining in the first half but the Titans scored a last second basket to pull ahead 31 – 29.

The Jets came out in the second half and scored first to tie the game at 31 – 31 during the first minute of play.  The two teams battled back and fourth for the next couple of minutes until Albany Tech pulled ahead and continued to outpace the Jets.

The Jets went almost five minutes without scoring in the second half and at one time, Albany Tech stretched the lead to 30 points, 82 – 52, before the Jets rallied and scored 10 points prior to the final buzzer.

Freshman Camarion Johnson was the top scorer for the Jets with 16 points.  He was followed by Deonte Williams with 12 and Kameron Forman with 11.  Justin Evans added seven points, Vaughn Prosser scored six, Daryl Bod had four, Jaylen Woods, 3, Israel Momodu, 2, and Jafeth Martinez closed out the scoring with one point.

The Jets are currently 9 – 5 in the conference and in a three-way tie for third place with South Georgia State and Georgia Highlands.  Albany Tech is in first place with a 12 – 2 GCAA record and Central is in second place at 11 – 4.

The Jets host Gordon State College on Wednesday, March 6, at 7 p.m. and then the Jets and Lady Jets will play their final game of the regular season on Saturday, March 9 at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. against East Georgia on Sophomore Day.  The SGTC sophomores will be recognized during the intermission between the two games.

The Sumter County Chamber of Commerce will be hosting a tail-gate for the Sophomore/Alumni Day event with free hot dogs and hamburgers and the trimmings.  Special giveaways will be available and admission is free for the games.