Dallas County fended off a furious comeback attempt to escape with a 55-51 on Tuesday.

The Hornets (12-7) controlled the game from the opening tip by jumping out to a 14-0 lead, and controlled the game and tempo for the majority of the contest.

Trailing 28-10, the Panthers awoke with a 9-1 run capped by a Nikki Williams 3-pointer to trim the Panthers’ deficit to 10.

Dallas County maintained its stranglehold on the lead, and entered the final frame leading 44-32.

But the Panthers (15-5) weren’t going down without a fight. A Williams 3-pointer triggered a 9-2 run to close the gap to 48-41.

“We made too many turnovers,” said Dallas County coach Charles Thompson. “We made some mistakes coming down the stretch.”

Keyaira Miles hit a 3-pointer to launch an 8-2 run to make it a 2-point contest. But that’s as close as the Panthers would get.

“We had plenty of situations to take charge, and we didn’t,” said Southside coach Wanda Tyler.

A traveling violation led to two Brittney Richardson free throws to seal the win for the Hornets.

Spears led the Hornets with 18 points and Richardson added 14.

Williams led Southside with 24 points and Regina Bartholomew finished with 11.