The West Jessamine Colts defeated the East Jessamine Jaguars 61-56 Friday in a thriller for the second time this season as they ended a four-game losing streak.

The Colts came prepared to play as West jumped ahead 9-0 in the first few minutes before East finally got rolling and went on a 5-0 run.

West led 13-10 after one quarter of play.

The Colts were in full control of the first half and outscored the Jags 18-9 in the second quarter to take a 31-19 halftime lead.

In the third quarter, West continued to dominate on both sides of the floor as they led by as many 17 points.

The Jags woke up in the fourth quarter and turned the tables.

East went on a 15-2 run to start the fourth quarter to cut the deficit to 50-46.

With two minutes left in the game, East managed to pull within a possession 58-55 but West held on strong.

West head coach Chris Begley said the team was felt relieved after the win.

“We played a really good first half,” he said. “We played a really good first half and only a part of the second half, but that’s girls basketball.”

Begley said East was able to pull themselves back in the game because they were able to capitalize on West’s turnovers.

“They turned up the pressure,” he said. “We helped them with our turnovers. It was a combination of both.”

Begley said his team is still young, but has came a long way compared to how they performed in the first half of the season.

“We’re still young,” he said. “We still make young, bad mistakes. We’re learning and trying to teach them to play for the next play. Our point guard threw two balls over our heads, but she stepped up and hit four three throws at the end.”

Poise is what Begley said his team will need to show to continue keeping for a district title.

“We need composure,” he said. “Learning how to win is big for us. We have a lot of underclassmen who are trying to learn varsity and adjust to the speed of the game. It has taken a lot of games, but hopefully we’ll be ready. We’re working hard every day trying to get better.”

Madlynn McDonald had a game-high 19 points for West and Delaysia Thomas added 10 points.

Jermyra Christian led the way for East with 14 points, Jasmine Atkerson followed with 13 points and Jaila Yeast posts 11 points.