Tiger Sharks open 2024 with back-to-back wins
Sometimes you got the touch, and sometimes you don’t, and on Saturday afternoon on Coach Epp Court at the Marion Craig Coliseum, a pair of Tiger Shark freshmen definitely had it.
With five three-pointers apiece and each shooting from outside the arc at about a 50 percent clip, Jayden Reese and Zay Jenkins were on fire as they led Port St. Joe to a 65-54 victory over Sneads.
“It’s surprising sometimes when kids get hot like that and start making shots, but they keep making them, we want them to keep shooting,” said coach Sandy Quinn.
“The Reese kid caught fire and started making a bunch of shots and I told them ‘Keep giving it to him, keep giving it to him,’” said Quinn. “And the Jenkins kid finally started banging his shots and when he gets going it feeds on the rest of the kids and they start making shots.”
The victory was something of a come-from-behind victory in that Port St. Joe scored the first nine points to go up 18-14 after the first quarter, but then let the Pirates climb back in it. Sneads outscored Port St. Joe 16-6 in the second quarter to go up 30-24 at the half.
“We’ve been preaching (holding opponents) to 10 points or less a quarter on defense,” said Quinn. “We jumped up on ‘em and it got away from them and then we battled back and got the lead back.”
The Tiger Sharks had a lopsided 29-7 third quarter, climaxed by Jenkins nailing a nearly half-court shot as the buzzer sounded to end it with Port St. Joe up 53-37. Sneads outscored the home team 17-12 in the final quarter but that was not nearly enough to avoid the 11-point loss.
Reese and Jenkins led the team with 23 and 22 points, respectively, with junior JD Becton tallying seven, senior Jaden Jenrett six, sophomore Elijah Harris five and senior BJ Cole three.
Cole led the team with nine rebounds, and Jenkins with six assists.
On Friday night, also at home, the Tigers Sharks had an easier time, downing Blountstown 45-31.
Port St. Joe opened a 21-14 halftime lead and widened it to 32-19 after three quarters.
Jenkins led the team in scoring with 11 points, with Harris tallying 10, Reese eight, Becton five, Cole and Jenrett each four, and junior Chance Gainer one.
“We played pretty well in the first half,” said Quinn. “And continued to play well in the second half.”
The Tiger Sharks, 5-7 overall and 2-0 in district play, face Bozeman Friday night at home, and then face district rival Franklin County Saturday night.
“Hopefully we can keep the streak going,” Quinn said. “And hopefully we can pack it out Saturday like they always do.”
Meet the Editor
David Adlerstein, The Apalachicola Times’ digital editor, started with the news outlet in January 2002 as a reporter.
Prior to then, David Adlerstein began as a newspaperman with a small Boston weekly, after graduating magna cum laude from Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts. He later edited the weekly Bellville Times, and as business reporter for the daily Marion Star, both not far from his hometown of Columbus, Ohio.
In 1995, he moved to South Florida, and worked as a business reporter and editor of Medical Business newspaper. In Jan. 2002, he began with the Apalachicola Times, first as reporter and later as editor, and in Oct. 2020, also began editing the Port St. Joe Star.