Our Lady Panthers did it once again! On Saturday night our girls took on Winter Haven High School’s Lady Blue Devils. It was another rivalry game only because our Lady Panthers put the Blue Devils out last year in the state semifinal game. It was a close game 3 out of the 4 quarters. In the last quarter, our Lady Panthers had a twelve point lead with about four minutes left in the game, but somehow the Blue Devils caught up. The Blue Devils Erica Lanier drained some crucial three’s as time was running down and also Shaquoya Green for the Blue Devils drove to the basket with 7 seconds left in the game adding two points to send the game into overtime.  After playing to a 38-38 tie in regulation, the Panthers (22-7) scored the first four points of overtime to take the lead and Shatorria Baker made four free throws in the final 15 seconds to seal it. At the end, you already know the outcome, Dillard defeats Winter Haven, 46-43 in OT -at the Lakeland Center in LAKELAND, Fla. Kayla Wright had a double-double with 19 points and 19 rebounds, and Dillard survived a furious Winter Haven rally to capture its second straight Class 5A state title in a 46-43 overtime victory Saturday. So Congratulations to our Lady Panthers for Representing Dillard to the fullest with this State Championship Win.   It is the sixth overall title for longtime coach Marcia Pinder, Florida’s all-time winningest coach.

Congratulations to both our Dillard High Girls and Boys basketball teams! On Tuesday, February 15th, 2011, our Lady Panthers went up against Nova’s Titans. We played our best and in the end came out on top, with a winning score of 58 – 44. Both teams had Fab Five players which included our own Lauren McGraw and T’Keyah Williams, and also Nova’s Clarissa Coddington.  It was a rival game with Nova having many complaints about our Girls’ program, yet we proved our worth on the court on Tuesday night and now we are on our way to Regional Finals on  Saturday  February 19, 2011  in the Panther’s Den against Sebastian River Sharks .  Another congratulations goes out to our Boys Basketball team for defeating Wellington High Wolverines 71 – 54 on Thursday,  February 17, 2011. Top scorers were Fred Landers with a game high 29 points and Jeremiah Eason adding 15 points. Our boys are now on their way to the Semi-Finals, playing on Tuesday February 22, 2011 against the Dwyer High School in the Panther’s Den. We wish both teams all the best in their upcoming games.