‘Relentless’ Douglass girls knock off defending region champs, will face Madison Central
Frederick Douglass harassed its way to its third straight 11th Region Tournament girls basketball championship game with a 62-45 semifinals win over defending champion Franklin County on Thursday at Paul Laurence Dunbar’s S.T. Roach Sports Center.
The Broncos (24-7), rated No. 12 in the final media poll of the season, toppled the No. 5 Flyers with the help of 24 points off 17 Franklin County turnovers.
“They were relentless,” said Douglass coach Daryl Moberly, who notched the 100th win of his career. “I told my girls to leave it on the court tonight and we did. … We always try to bring pressure and try to turn teams over, no matter who we play.”
Douglass’ intensity was evident from the outset as it took a 12-4 lead in the early going. MK Bennett got things started with a 3-pointer and had two fast-break layups off Franklin County turnovers in the run. Reagan Gregonis’ steal and layup capped the rally and forced a Franklin County timeout with 3:28 left in the first quarter.
“We had better energy and started really fast,” said Bennett, who finished with a team-high 19 points to go with seven assists and two steals. “I felt comfortable when they threw the ball up. I was locked in. I was ready.”
Franklin County (26-6) cut into the lead late in the first quarter and then again early in the third quarter, but each time Douglass clamped down and stretched its advantage. Senior center Juliana Frazee led the Flyers with 16 points. Franklin County made only 31.9 percent of its shots from the field. Logan Kennedy, the Flyers’ second-leading scorer this season, suffered an undisclosed injury midway through the second quarter and did not return.
“We played terrible,” Franklin County coach Joey Thacker said. “We looked nothing like we did all year long defensively. Bennett got loose multiple times down the lane both in the half court and in transition. I thought we did a pretty good job on (Jaelee) Knowles, we just didn’t guard anybody else.”
The Flyers managed to hold Douglass standout sophomore forward Jaelee Knowles to 12 points, six below her average, but Knowles made an impact elsewhere with 13 rebounds, four steals, three blocks and two assists. Five of Knowles’ rebounds were on the offensive glass. Eighth-grader Tamia Waide chipped in 13 points, including three of her four 3-point attempts.
Bennett’s play provided a spark both on offense and defense, Moberly said.
“MK is an unsung hero at times, but she’s really like that. She really can play,” Moberly said. “She gets in her head at times, but MK was the MVP tonight.”
Douglass, the 2023 11th Region champion, had lost to Franklin County in their only two meetings — 53-46 in last season’s region finals and 51-49 on a buzzer-beater back on Dec. 14.
“We learned from our mistakes when we played them last year and at the beginning of this season,” Bennett said.
Next, Douglass will face No. 11 Madison Central in the region finals at 7 p.m. Saturday. The Broncos beat Madison Central 64-58 in Richmond on Feb. 7.
“We’ve got to keep our foot on the gas and get ready,” Moberly said.
Madison Central defeats Lafayette
Madison Central got critical runs in the second and third quarters and held on for a 54-46 win over Lafayette in Thursday’s late 11th Region semifinals game at Dunbar.
Trailing a back-and-forth contest 24-23 with 4:13 left in the second quarter, the No. 11 Indians held Lafayette scoreless the rest of the half and took a 29-24 lead at the break.
In the third quarter, Madison Central (28-2) extended its advantage to as many as 16 points as 11th Region player of the year Nataya Strader got hot and senior point guard Brittany Campbell began launching outlet passes to teammates for Indians layups.
“We did a better job of getting better shots,” Madison Central coach Scott True said. “Now, we missed a lot of good shots tonight, but … we didn’t force some things.”
Madison Central routed Lafayette 62-45 in their regular season meeting on Jan. 25. Strader knew the rematch would be tougher.
“It’s not easy to beat a team twice in one season,” said Strader, the 11th Region’s Miss Basketball candidate. “We had to keep our composure. We started to get a little out of sorts, but we stuck together, and that’s what, that’s what helped us.”
Lafayette (26-5) trimmed its deficit to 33-30 three minutes into the second half, but ceded a 16-3 Madison Central run over the next three minutes. The Generals got no closer than five points the rest of the way. Abbey Popham and Tess Nelson led Lafayette with 13 and 10 points, respectively.
Strader led the Indians with 15 points, including seven points during their third-quarter run. Campbell added 11 points to go with eight rebounds and a team-high six assists. Cameryn Ridderikhoff scored 10.
The win advances Madison Central to its first region title game since 2013, the last time the program advanced to the Girls’ Sweet 16 and also had a Miss Basketball finalist with Larryn Brooks.
As it has for the last two seasons, Douglass stands in Madison Central’s way. The Indians have lost their last six games to the Broncos, including regional semifinals defeats each of the last two years.
“They’re just so athletic,” True said of Saturday’s opponent. “You have to take care of the basketball, and you have to take great shots. They’re going to try to speed us up, and they’ve got a really, really good post player. She’s tough. So we’ll have to be ready.”
Saturday
Girls 11th Region Tournament championship
At Paul Laurence Dunbar High School’s S.T. Roach Sports Center
7 p.m.: Madison Central (28-2) vs. Frederick Douglass (24-7)
Tickets: $10 via GoFan app
Streaming: Glicod.com
