Ponte Verda ( Nease High School)- Choctaw jumped out to a 15-0 advantage early in the first quarter at Nease. The long four hour drive did not seem to phase them in the beginning of the game. Nadia Fingel was mostly responsible for the collateral damage in the beginning. She grabbed offensive rebounds and scored easy put backs. She drove to the basket and converted uncontested layups. There was literally no stopping her as she scored 14 points in the first half.
Choctaw’s defense stifled the Nease offense as well. ” We came into the game knowing we had to stop Sydney Searcy” said Choctaw’s Fingal, and for the most part they did that in the first half. Nease was forced to swing the ball to other players who could not knock down shots. They struggled from the field mightily missing their first seven shots of the game. They would finally get on the board at the end of the first period with a three pointer in which the crowd erupted with enthusiasm. They were poised for their Lady Sharks to complete the seemingly insurmountable comeback as they roared with every shot made, every loose ball, every block, just like the one Searcy had against the much taller Fingal in the third period. 
Nease would be able to walk down a 12 point halftime deficit to 9 points in the third, but Choctaw never flinched, never wavered and kept the pressure on.
Nease unfortunately seemed to be mentally defeated by this time. Some Panther players were noticeably less enthusiastic about diving for loose balls or raising the level of intensity on defense, compared to the Indians who played as if their lives depended upon winning. Justyce Riggs was a catalyst for them on the court as she dove for loose balls, drove to the basket for layups and garnered several steals on the night. She finished with 9 points. Fingal finished with 22 points for Choctaw and Searcy finished with 14 points. All around it was a total team effort by the Indians who capped off an impressive performance from start to finish with a big win 57-44 over Nease. Choctawhatchee will advance to play Fort Myers in the 6A Final Four.
