A strong fourth-quarter scoring run Tuesday night in Valdosta was the difference as the Bainbridge High School Lady Cats defeated the Lowndes County High School Vikettes 61-56 in the final round of the Lowndes County Vikettes and Vikings Tip-off Tournament.

“I thought we played good defense the whole game,” Lady Cats coach Latreisha Moon, whose team is now 2-0 on the season, said after the game.

“Lowndes County led most of the game, but we kept it close. When we finally got the lead in the fourth quarter, we built on it. Offensively we had three players in double figures, and we really need to do that to win.”

April Thomas led the way for the Lady Cats with 22 points. Alexis Burke added 18, and Bria Harris put in 16. Richana Jackson contributed 4 and Briana Wade put in 1.

The Lady Cats opened their season Monday night with a 51-47 victory over the Coffee County High School Lady Trojans in the opening round of the Lowndes County Tipoff Tournament.

They returned to action yesterday afternoon when they took on the East Gadsden, Fla., High School Jaguars in the first round of the two-day Rickards High School Lady Raiders Shootout in Tallahassee, Fla.

In the Shootout’s final round today, they will take on the homestanding Rickards Lady Raiders at 6 p.m.

The Lady Cats first regular-season home game will come Friday, Dec. 4, when they host the Thomasville High School Lady Bulldogs at 6 p.m. at the new Bainbridge High School gymnasium.

“We will have to keep the intensity that we showed on both ends of the floor in Valdosta at the Rickards Shootout,” Moon said in continuing her comments following Tuesday night’s win over Lowndes County.

“East Gadsden and Rickards are both good teams, so we will have to be focused when we go to Tallahassee,” Moon said.