FAYETTEVILLE — A poor shooting third quarter spelled doom for the Northwood girls here in Fayetteville on Saturday evening as E.E. Smith knocked the Lady Chargers from the 3A NCHSAA state playoffs with a 57-41 defeat.
The third round, East Bracket loss ended the Northwood season at 22-6 while E.E. Smith (29-1) advances into the East Regional semi-finals to battle Wilson Hunt.
In the first half the Lady Chargers played the Golden Bulls even as the two teams battled to a 13-all tie after one before Smith went up 26-24 at the break.
Tekeyah Bland had six points in the first for Northwood while Hannah Kanapkey added a trey, Bland three points, and Caitlin Bailey three more in the second.
Amiah Savage had four points and Miya Giles-Jones three in the first for Smith, and Ke’Onna Bryant four and Savage three in the second.
“Tonight really is about 1 bad quarter and the third quarter really did us in tonight, and this has been somewhat of a theme this year,” said NW coach Cameron Vernon. “We have struggled at times coming out of the half but we give E.E. Smith a lot of credit, their pressure and athleticism was not like anything we have faced this year. Also their ability to attack the offensive boards also contributed to their success. But the biggest stat to me is we sent them to the line 43 times. That’s the most we have sent a team to the foul line in my 11 years as a head coach. I am not saying this either to question any calls because we fouled them. We really struggled with their speed and used out hands too much.”
Vernon also commended the Golden Bulls for their efforts on the boards and at the charity stripe, also keys in the E.E. Smith win.
“Also on their offensive boards they were right underneath the basket for put backs and we fouled to stop that,” noted Vernon. “So they did an outstanding job of attacking us and getting to the line to shoot 30-43 (70%).
In the decisive third quarter Natalie Bell sank a trey for the Chargers but the locals managed just five points altogether and were outscored 16-5 all told. Savage had six points while Tamia Morris chipped in five for the Golden Bulls.
Jones would add five in the fourth and Morris three more as the hosts outscored Northwood 15-12 in the final frame to seal the 57-41 win. Bailey had four for the Chargers in the fourth.
It’s always hard to end the season and this was no exception for Vernon with this years team which was resilient and battled through a lot of adversity with the loss of several key players to injuries early on.
“As disappointed as we all our for our season to end tonight I told the girls there is so much to celebrate - a conference championship, 22 win season, and trip to the Sweet 16. We as a coaching staff were truly blessed that they allowed us to join them on their journey this season. Our senior class of Jy Smith, Hannah Kanapkey, Caitlin Bailey and Chandler Adams will be sorely missed because of their leadership they exhibited this year. I thoroughly enjoyed coaching them for the last 3-4 years.”
Bland led Northwood with 11 points while Bailey chipped in seven points and six rebounds, and Gianna McManaman three assists.
Savage paced all scorers with 17 points for the Golden Bulls while Morris added 11 and Giles-Jones nine.