Estill erased a nine-point halftime deficit against Hardeeville in the Class A Lower State girls basketball championship, but couldn't hold on to a lead late in the fourth quarter, falling to the Hurricanes, 47-44.

Though the season came to an end with the loss, head coach Cecil Jenkins had nothing but good words for his young squad.

"Those kids came determined to play today," he said. "It's nothing I said or did, it was all those kids. They wanted to come out here and show this Hardeeville team that they could play with them.

"And I think they accomplished that."

Whitney Bennett led the Gators with 18 points and 16 rebounds. Guard Lydia Mikell added five points, nine rebounds and eight assists.

The Wade Hampton boys also fell in their title game, 57-55, against Mullins. Isiah Griffin led the team with 15 points, while Anthony Orr and Jeremy Ford chipped in with 10 and nine points, respectively.