Banks County’s remarkable season ended with a 52-42 loss to Fannin County in the GHSA State Championship in Macon on Saturday. The #2-ranked Lady Leopards (25-6) led roughly half of the contest before the #1-ranked Lady Rebels (29-2) pulled ahead for good late in the third.
Fannin held an early lead before the Lady Leopards caught fire offensively. Emmie Chitwood hit a clutch tray from the corner, and buckets by Ansley Moore and Ryleigh Murphy had Banks up 17-14 at the end of the first.
Neither team’s defense would relent for the first four-plus minutes of the second, as the Lady Leopards were still up just 19-16 with 2:30 remaining. It was a 3-point lead of 23-20 at the break.
The Lady Rebels went on a 7-0 run to start the second half and take a lead for the first time since the early going. The offense again struggled for both sides, as Banks County didn’t get a point until the 2:49 mark on a pair of free throws by Janakate Gibson. Fannin, though, churned out a flurry of buckets to take a comfortable 32-25 lead, forcing a Banks timeout.
The Lady Leopards didn’t record a single field goal in the quarter until under a minute left when Reese Murphy drained a shot from downtown and then added a reverse layup, cutting a 7-point deficit down to one (32-31) entering the final period.
It was rinse-and-repeat in the fourth. Fannin hit shots, primarily by Maggie Ledford, while Banks County was unable to get much going. The loss snapped a 21-game win streak. It marked the second State Runner-Up finish for Banks County in the last three years.
Reese and Ryleigh Murphy both posted nine points apiece, while Moore and Gibson each had six. Marleigh Dale ended with five, Chitwood three, and two each for Canon Collier and Maggie Irvin. Dale also had 11 rebounds. Fannin was paced by Ledford with 22 points, followed by Reese Lewis with 14 and Izzie Jabaley’s 11.
