Girls Basketball: Ellender survives South Lafourche’s Comeback Attempt in Quarterfinals

Elmore Songe
February 27, 2020
Lottie Toups
February 28, 2020
Elmore Songe
February 27, 2020
Lottie Toups
February 28, 2020

In a hard-fought game that went down to the wire, No. 4 Ellender beat No. 5 South Lafourche 63-59 in the girls basketball Class 4A state quarterfinal playoff game.


The “House of Pain” gym on Ellender’s campus was packed on Thursday night, with many fans on both sides loudly cheering on their team.

The Lady Tarpons sparked momentum first, gaining a lead early in the first quarter.

But the Lady Patriots were quickly able to pull it together, making it a 17-all game at the end of the period.


“I told them to just keep playing defense,” said Kenneth Dixon, Ellender coach. “It’s no big deal; it’s a four-quarter game.”

The game remained tight at the half, with an Ellender 29-28 lead.

The Lady Patriots turned it on in the third quarter, however, grabbing crucial rebounds and spreading the ball around to get good shots. They ended up going on a 12-3 run, giving them a 10-point cushion of 53-43 going into the fourth quarter.



It looked like Ellender was going to comfortably walk away with the momentous victory, but South Lafourche wasn’t going to fold that easily.

Thanks to some Ellender turnovers and missed free throws, the Lady Tarpons gave a valiant effort to cut the Lady Patriots’ lead to just two points with less than 10 seconds in the game.

However, Ellender guard Jamia Singleton, who didn’t play normal minutes because of foul trouble, dismantled the comeback with two clutch free throws late to seal the game.


“It’s just a miracle, especially going against a great team like South Lafourche,” Dixon told the Times.

Asia Bates was the lead scorer for Ellender with 16 points, and Ava Pitre led South Lafourche with 17 points.

Next, the Lady Patriots have a state semifinals match against No. 1 LaGrange in the AllState Sugar Bowl/Girls’ Marsh Madness tournament in Lake Charles next week.


Dixon said there are still areas the team can improve in, such as half-court offense and being in better shape, but he says he is happy with what they have accomplished so far.

“We are young — one senior, one junior, one sophomore, and the rest are freshman,” he said. “I am really proud of them for getting to this point, and now we can build from here.”