Malayziah Etheredge (2) and Nyah Leveretter (21) go for the double team to shutdown the surging North Augusta offense | Photos/Leroy Howard
GREENVILLE – The Westwood Lady Redhawks needed just one more win to advance to their first 4A State Title game in program history, but in their way stood a powerhouse North Augusta Yellow Jackets team. The Yellow Jackets, back-to-back defending State Champions, played a nearly perfect defensive game and ended the dreams of a Redhawk championship with a 58-32 win.
Unique Drake (5) climbs the invisible ladder to get past the aggressive North Augusta defense in the semifinals of the 4A State Championship tournament.
North Augusta showed what has earned them the last two championships. Their defense crippled Westwood from the opening buzzer. The Redhawks fell behind 11-0, and it took nearly five minutes before Unique Drake sank the first Redhawk score of the game. Drake notched all of the Redhawks four points in the first.
More than half of the North Augusta roster scored at least once in the first quarter en route to a dominant 18-4 opening period. The Yellow Jackets’ defense stayed on lock-down mode and put a damper on the usually potent Redhawk offensive threats.
Westwood only put up five points in the second after their lackluster four-point first. Meanwhile, on the opposite end of the court, Mya Burns and Amari Young continued to pick apart the Redhawk defense. Young ended with a game-high 23 points and 12 rebounds. Burns had 14 points, six rebounds and four assists.
The Yellow Jacket lead ballooned to 40-9 at halftime, and even though the Westwood offense found stretches of success in the second half, they were not able to get the lead back down below 20.
NA – 18 – 22 – 9 – 9 – 58
WHS – 4 – 5 – 11 – 12 – 32
NA – Amari Young – 23, Mya Burns – 14, Sarah Crews – 6, Tyliah Burns – 6, Aaliyah Bell – 5, J’Mani Ingram – 2, Kianna Lee – 2.
WHS – Nyah Leveretter – 8, Unique Drake – 7, Mya Bleton – 7, Maliyah Lockett – 5, Malayziah Etheredge – 2.
