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The North Middle School Gatorettes lost to the East Lady Panthers 33-27 on the road Monday for their first loss of the season.

The Gatorettes rallied from a seven-point deficit early in the fourth quarter to tie the score with two minutes left, but the Lady Panthers would quickly pull back ahead to give them a loss.

Airiana Hill scored all of the Gatorettes’ points in the first quarter as the team staked itself to a slight early lead in the contest.

North led 9-8 after one quarter.

The lead changed hands a few times in the second quarter before the Lady Panthers ended the half with eight straight points to take control of the scoreboard.

North trailed 22-15 at halftime.

The Gatorettes allowed just three points in the third quarter as they made up a small amount of ground in the period.

They trailed 25-20 going into the fourth quarter.

After the Lady Pioneers scored the first two points of the final period, a 3-pointer from Macie Davis and two layups by Shekinah Miller tied the score at 27-27 with 2:11 remaining.

However, the Lady Pioneers scored on their next two possessions to re-establish control of the game, and the Gatorettes weren’t able to score again as they ultimately lost by six.

Hill led the Gatorettes with 10 points for the game, followed by Davis and Miller with six points each.

Allie Burnette scored three points and Shayla Burnette scored two.

With the loss, the Gatorettes moved to 1-1 on the season.

They will next play Thursday at Highland Rim Middle School. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m.