Greensboro &045; The Demopolis High School Lady Tigers opened their 2003 season with a close come-from-behind 47-43 victory over the 4A Lady Tigers of Thomasville High School Saturday night in Thomasville.

And then DHS followed up nicely with an easy 60-23 win over the 1A Lady Eagles of A. L. Johnson last night in the Greensboro Classic.

But even with a 2-0 start, DHS head coach Tony Pittman knows there is still plenty of work that needs to be done.

Saturday night the Lady Tigers looked impressive when they had the ball, but it was their poor defensive effort in the first half they had them trailing 25-22. But thanks to a strong defensive performance in the second half by sophomore Kelly Johnson and sophomore Shawnese Armstead the Lady Tigers were able to bounce back.

Johnson came away with 12 points and eight boards on the night, and Armstead, who sports the number 00, put up nine points and had four steals.

The Lady Tigers may have had to work hard for their win in Thomasville Saturday night, but against the Lady Eagles they made it look all too simple. The Lady Tigers’ starting five quickly grabbed a 20-point lead over the Lady Eagles before the end of the first period and then kicked back on the bench for most of the night.

Sophomore Katrria Johnson lead the way for the Lady Tigers as she racked up 14 points and 11 rebounds on the night. But it was junior Gabrielle Essex who seemed to steal the show last night as she collected 10 points, six rebounds, six assist and seven steals.

Essex was also the leading scorer in Saturday night’s game in Thomasville with 21 points and nine rebounds.

With a 31-12 halftime lead the Lady Tigers slowed the pace in the third period only to accidentally run away with it in the fourth period and outscore the Lady Eagles 19-7.

With their two wins under their belts, the Lady Tigers will head home to Demopolis for their Demopolis Classic Tournament this weekend and are looking to make it 3-0 when they take on Jackson High School this Friday night at 6:30 p.m.