BASKETBALL: Defense carries PCHS girls to sixth straight win
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[Winning despite a dismal 10-for-27 at the free throw line, Pinckneyville improved to 3-0 at the Herrin Holiday Hoops girls basketball tournament on Wednesday by getting past Cobden 42-38.
"We defended pretty well on the half-court and found a way to gut out a victory," said Lady Panthers head coach Alan Englehardt. "We didn't shoot the ball very well from the perimeter and fell apart at the line, but because we guarded we were able to pull one out."
Taylor Cicardi's 14 points were a team best, Dani Jenkel added 10 points, Heather McDaniel and Taylor Kuhnert 6, Mo Ramsey 3, Maddy Keith 2 and Katrina Henson 1.
"Taylor Kuhnert really gave us a boost off the bench, getting us 6 points in the second quarter when we were really struggling to score," Englehardt said.
The Lady Panthers still need to get past Murphysboro (11:00 a.m.) and Herrin (8:00 p.m.) on Thursday to assure themselves of an outright championship.
"We still control our own destiny, and need to come up with a couple big wins tomorrow to win the tournament," said Englehardt.
The Lady Panthers are 10-4 on the season and have won six consecutive games overall.