Dawson falls to Summer Creek 58-42 in region final
February 24, 2025
The Lady Eagles closed out the season with a 34-5 record while advancing to the region finals for the first time in school history. This was also the first time Dawson had ever won an outright district championship.
With high hopes of winning the region title and advancing to the state basketball tournament, Dawson unfortunately ran into a strong Summer Creek team that also had the same dream.
Both teams opened up the game trading baskets, but it was Summer Creek that relied on the long-range shot resulting in three 3-pointers, two by sophomore guard Addison Martin as the Lady Bulldogs score 13 points in the first quarter.
The Eagles were equal to the task as they had five players who got in the scoring column with Jaycee Ingram hitting a pair of soft jumpers while Kendall Ford added a basket and a free throw for the team's 13 points.
The Lady Bulldogs took control of the game in the second quarter as they outscored the Lady Eagles 15-6 for a 28-19 lead at intermission.
Summer Creek hit three more 3-pointers led by Jr Kennedy Simpson who hit a trey, a field goal, and a free throw. She scored nine points in the first half.
Martin hit a three and a free throw giving her 10 points in the opening half.
Dawson saw Aubriana Howard score five of the six points for the Lady Eagles with a 3-pointer and a pair of free throws giving her seven points in the first half.
The Lady Eagles needed to close the gap in the third quarter but they struggled to do so as the Lady Bulldogs increased their lead behind the shooting of Simpson as she hit two more 3-pointers while going 4-for-4 from the charity stripe for 10 more points giving her 19 for the game.
Ford did her best to keep the Lady Eagles close with six points but the score was 47-30 in favor of Summer Creek leading into the final frame.
Jaylynn Perez-Richard hit a three and was 2-for-2 from the line in the final period for Dawson while Ingram tossed in a pair of short jumpers to edge the Lady Bulldogs 12-11 in the final eight minutes but it wouldn't be enough to overcome the deficit leaving Dawson on the short end 58-42.
Summer Creek used the free throw line down the stretch hitting 7-of-12 free throws to help maintain their lead. The Lady Bulldogs finished the game hitting 16-of-27 from the line.
Dawson was led in scoring by Ford (10), Howard (10), and Ingram (10). Jr guard Journey Lovett, who was one of the team's leading scorers, was held to only five points.
The great news is that Dawson only has three seniors who will be graduating. They are Ros Chavira, Jaylynn Perez-Richard, and Jaycee Ingram.
Dawson head coach Sharee Griffin has done a remarkable job in building strong foundation for the Lady Eagles basketball program and the future looks bright after a record-breaking season.
