Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor

CALERA – The Calera Eagles had a rough going in their first four games of the season, but now, they are officially in the win column in the 2024-25 campaign.

The Eagles defeated the Jemison Panthers 58-53 on Monday, Nov. 18 at Calera High School to earn their first win of the season.

Calera got the slight edge over Jemison in a tight opening quarter thanks to five field goals from four different players, including four points from Devyn Goodman.

That gave the Eagles a 10-8 lead at the end of the first quarter before both offenses kicked into second gear.

Calera continued to balance out the scoring as seven different players found the bottom of the basket, including Garrett Mahone, who scored four points during the quarter.

Jemison responded with a strong free throw shooting performance and won the second quarter 18-16, tying up the teams at 26-26 heading into the halftime break.

With the game on a razor’s edge coming out of the locker room, Calera took advantage, getting multiple baskets from Keegan Johnson and Israel Robinson to outpace the Panthers in the third quarter.

The 19-point offensive effort put the Eagles up 45-40 going into the fourth quarter, and they held on to that advantage down the stretch.

Five more points from Mahone and a collective free throw performance from the team helped Calera keep the lead out of reach as the teams matched each other’s offensive efforts in the fourth at 13 points apiece.

The Eagles used that to seal the five-point win and break their four-game losing skid.

Mahone led the team with 12 points and Johnson joined him in double figures with 10 points. Robinson scored nine points, Bryant Waites and Goodman each had six points apiece and Darion Hamilton earned five points in the win.

Calera will have a quick turnaround as it hosts Class 4A Dora on Tuesday, Nov. 19 at Calera High School. The Eagles will then conclude their five-game homestand on Thursday, Nov. 21 against Stanhope Elmore and Friday, Nov. 22 against Pelham. All games will tip off at 7:30 p.m.