Super soph perfect in Skyline win

Skyline coach Deb Bennett spent two days feeling frustrated and upset after the Eagles' last game even though they won.

Her squad won again Tuesday night, but this time she couldn't hide her joy or pride.

"We just haven't played well," she said after Skyline defeated No. 4 ranked Riverton 50-47. "I'm just glad we competed tonight."

The Eagles did compete, especially sophomore point-guard Jenteal Jackson. The youngster hit 6 of 6 3-pointers and finished with 24 points.

"Her presence on the court is amazing," Bennett said. "She's so much bigger than she actually is, and so much older than she actually is. She just has this unbelievable way about her."

Some of her calm may come from the fact that she also plays golf and comes from a very athletically accomplished family.

"She's got a great family, and they've offered her a lot of opportunities and support," Bennett said. "But some of it is just her personality. I don't think I've ever seen her rattled."

Both teams came into Tuesday's game undefeated, and the outcome was in question until the final buzzer sounded and a Riverton 3-point attempt fell short.

"We're off to a good start so far," said Riverton coach Ron Ence. "I just think they out played us . . . The way they played had a lot to do with the way we looked . . . Hats off to Deb because they just played a great game."

Jackson may have been the team leader offensively, but the entire team played well defensively, and Theresa Uipi grabbed some huge offense rebounds that helped the Eagles hold onto their slight lead in the fourth quarter.

"She's a volleyball player and she played well for us," Bennett said.

Alicia White, Jaime Judkins, Liz Johnson and Allie Engman all made some nice plays on defense that helped shutdown the Riverton offense.

"Engman was playing in her first varsity game and I thought she really helped us," said Bennett, who like her players, was sporting a yellow headband. Team captains Judkins and White came to the team earlier in the week with the headbands and a theme for this season.

"It's fully charged and perfectly aligned," she said, offering the example of a flashlight with five batteries being unusable if one battery is dead or facing the wrong direction.