After having lost a blowout in their previous game against Kathleen, the George Jenkins Eagles were happy to have found some success on Tuesday. They put the hurt on McKeel Academy with a sharp 43-22 victory. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest victory George Jenkins has posted since December 5, 2023.
Taylor Gibson continued her habit of posting crazy stat lines, dropping a double-double on 11 points and ten rebounds. She has been hot recently, having posted eight or more rebounds the last three times she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Marykate Benham, who scored seven points along with eight rebounds.
McKeel Academy's loss came despite a true team effort from the offense, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Skyelar Smith, who scored five points along with five rebounds and three steals. Smith has been hot recently, having posted two or more steals the last three times she's played. Another player making a difference was Malayna Sheffield, who scored two points along with seven rebounds and four blocks.
The victory got George Jenkins back to even at 8-8. As for McKeel Academy, they bumped their record down to 9-9 with that defeat, which was their fourth straight at home.
Both teams are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. George Jenkins and Bartow will face off at 7:30 p.m. on January 18th without much rest after finishing up games yesterday. Bartow will have to bring their A-game into this one, as they are staring down a pretty big deficit in the MaxPreps Florida Rankings (they are ranked 509th, while George Jenkins is ranked 250th). As for McKeel Academy, they will be playing at home against Discovery at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday.
