Second quarter surge sparks Meridian past Jones, 74-61

Published 7:55 am Tuesday, February 24, 2026

ELLISVILLE – Meridian used a 15-2 run over the final part of the second quarter and went on to defeat Jones College 74-61 here Monday night at A.B. Howard Gymnasium.

The Lady Eagles improve to 21-5 overall, 9-3 in MACCC play. Jones drops to 18-8 and 7-6.

It was “Sophomore Night” and it also marked the final home regular season game for the Bobcats.

There were eight lead changes in the opening period and Meridian would hold a 14-13 edge after the opening 10 minutes.

Larissa Hubbard’s  3-pointer tied it at 18-18 with 5:40 left in the second quarter. That’s when the Lady Eagles took over and moved out to a 33-20 lead with 47 seconds showing when Awa Diouf made a layup.

Two Jakera Ducksworth free throws with five seconds showing cut the lead to 33-22 at halftime.

Meridian kept up the pressure in the second half and would take its longest lead of the night when Diouf made a layup with two seconds to play in the third quarter to make it 61-42.

The Bobcats battled back in the final quarter and pulled within 65-55 with 5:01 to play on a Julissa Claxton layup, but they would get no closer.

Ducksworth topped the Bobcats with 18 points. Lamarah Cleaves had 13 points and eight rebounds and Hubbard finished with 10 points and seven rebounds.

Terica Smith led five players in double figures for the Lady Eagles with 19 points. Ashlynn Stephens had 13, Nataysia Willis had 11 and Jamariyah Hilton and Diouf finished with 10 each. Smith and Washington had eight rebounds each.

Jones made 21-of-61 shots from the field for 34%, 4-of-20 from three-point range for 20% and 15-of-21 free throws for 71%. The Lady Eagles were 26-of-56 from the floor for 46%, 5-of-12 from three-point range for 42%, and 17-of-19 from the free throw line for 90%.

Each team committed 26 turnovers and Meridian had 17 assists compared to 10 for Jones.

The Lady Eagles outscored Jones 36-26 on points in the paint.

The Bobcats will end regular season play with a 5:30 p.m. game on March 2 at Southwest.

Jones is expected to host a first round Region 23 playoff game on March 5.