Highland Cougars Play Emotional Last Regular Season Games
The Highland Cougars closed out their regular season with a matchup against Clarence Cannon Conference rivals, the Palmyra Panthers. Along with the doubleheader, the Highland Cheer Squad welcomed young cheerleaders to perform at halftime of the girls’ game.
The Cougar and Panther communities came together to celebrate Forever a Friend of Syd Night, honoring the life of Sydney Mead. Mead, a Highland alumna and Lewis County resident, tragically passed away late last year. From a young age, she battled cancer, overcoming it four times. Though she passed away cancer-free, the side effects of her treatments ultimately took her life.
Sydney was a junior at Culver-Stockton College, majoring in biochemistry with a focus on pre-med. She will be remembered for her strength, intelligence, kindness, faith, and determination.
In her honor, a bake sale was held outside the gym, along with the sale of shirts and bracelets to raise money for the Sydney Mead Memorial Fund. During warmups, both teams wore Forever a Friend of Syd shirts, and cheerleaders from both schools wore them throughout the game to show their continued support.
After the girls’ game, the cheerleaders and basketball team’s invited the Mead family onto the court to present them with a check. It was also announced that a portion of the night’s gate receipts would be donated to the fund in Sydney’s memory.
Cougar Defense Silences Panthers
The Highland Lady Cougars defeated the Palmyra Lady Panthers with a final score of 51-24. The Cougars stood strong defensively, allowing only four Panthers to score. Senior #42 Sydney Compton led Palmyra with 10 points, followed by #10 Clare Williams with 9 points, #21 Anna James with 3, and #23 Avery Wisehart with 2.
Coach Ashton Jaco credited her team’s defense as one of the keys to their win: “We defended really well. We made it tough for them, and after that first quarter, we settled in offensively and attacked.”
#25 Addy Abell led the Cougars with 14 points, while #15 Chevie Sharpe added 12. The Highland Lady Cougars improved to 23-3 on the season and will now look ahead to the Class 3 District 6 Tournament. They hold the #1 seed and will receive a bye. They will play the winner of the (4) Monroe City Lady Panthers vs. (5) Macon Tigerettes matchup on Thursday, February 27th, at Highland. The Lewis County Scoop will provide a radio-style broadcast of the Highland Lady Cougars’ games on the Scoop’s Facebook and YouTube pages.
The Palmyra Lady Panthers fall to 14-11 and will also focus on the district tournament. They earned the #3 seed and will face the #6 seed Clark County. The winner of that game will go on to play the #2 seed South Shelby Cardinals.
Cougars Youth Brings Excitement
The Highland Cougars fell to the Palmyra Panthers, 69-36. The Panthers look to stay strong as they focus on the district tournament, while the Cougars continue to find positives in every game they play, despite the final score.
After the game, Coach Edmonson reflected on her team’s progress: “We had some younger ones step up, which was nice. I thought Cason Bartz came in and scored his points. We’re learning how to push the ball up the floor a little quicker, but there’s still a lot to work on.”
Freshman #3 Cason Bartz led the Cougars with 10 points, while Senior #10 Lane Hinton added 6.
The Highland Cougars fall to 3-21 and will begin their district tournament as the 6th seed. They will face the #3 seed South Shelby Cardinals on Monday, February 24th. The Lewis County Scoop will provide a radio-style broadcast of the game on the Scoop’s Facebook and YouTube pages.
The Palmyra Panthers were led by #11 Hudson Bock, who scored 18 points, and #24 Ryan McKinney, who added 12. The Panthers improve to 21-5 and hold the 2nd seed in the tournament. They will play the #7 seed Mark Twain Tigers.
