BASKETBALL: Goreville eliminates PJHS girls at State

INA, IL - Goreville got nine first-quarter points from Cassandra Jones and built a sizable early lead on Pinckneyville en route to a 49-26 quarterfinal victory at the SIJHSAA Class M Girls State Tournament on Friday night at Rend Lake College.

The Blackcats move on to Tuesday night's semifinals to take on Gallatin County, with the winner meeting either Aviston or Okawville in the championship later this week. The Junior Lady Panthers finished their season with an overall record of 17-7 and as champions of the Chester Regional.

Pinckneyville led only once - 3-2 just a minute into the game following a three-pointer by Daisy Dudek. Jones then scored the next nine Goreville points and the Lady Blackcats pulled ahead 14-6 after eight minutes.

The Lady Panthers got no closer than ten down in the second half.

Jones led all scorers with 16 points for Goreville. Ashlyn Darnell finished with 11 points, Brenni Jo Tripp had 6, Nona Luke 5, Schylar Messmer 4, Shayna Elms, Cheyenne Walker, Madison Herron each had 2, and Jessica Schuetz 1.

For PJHS, Raygan Yates had 13 points, Caitlin Anderson and Mariah Clark both had 4, Dudek 3 and Josie Gleason 2.