Lady Seahawks blast Baker Gators in district contest

Megan O’Neal was on fire Thursday night nailing six 3-pointers in the first half to lead the South Walton Seahawks to a 59-27 road victory over district opponent, Baker Gators.

“We came out on fire,” said South Walton Coach Kevin Craig.

“I can’t say enough about her (Megan). She’s the best shooter I’ve seen in all the years I’ve coached,” he said.

“But she’s more than that,” he said noting how she runs the floor and handles the ball.

“I gave her the keys a few weeks ago. She drives the bus,” he said.

In the first quarter, the Seahawks jumped out to a 7-0 lead in the first minute with Allee Coble hitting a couple of inside shots, and O’Neal busting off a 3-pointer, her first of five in the first period alone.

Baker finally got a shot to fall with Kaitlyn Watts hitting a 3-pointer. After that, South Walton went on a 27-point run with O’Neal draining the outside shot, while Savannah Slade and Coble worked the inside.

In the second quarter, South Walton continued to take it to the Gators outscoring them 13-9. O’Neal hit a layup and added another 3-pointer, while Courtney Chesser added a jumper for two points. Slade hit an inside shot and O’Neal dished off to Coble inside for two shots off the glass and a 47-12 lead at the half.

With a running clock the entire second half, South Walton ran the subs in and out with Devany Beard scoring four points, Ellie Wiggins hit a 3-pointer, and Aidan Collins scored two points. Coble also added one more layup and a free throw.

“This was a great start for us to get the No. 1 seed going into the tournament,” Craig said.

The district tournament starts the week of Jan. 25 with game times to be announced later.