ROCKINGHAM — After taking a season off last year from playing in the Southeastern Middle School Athletic Conference’s girls’ championship game, the No. 1 Rockingham Middle School Lady Rockets are back in 2019.
Last winter, the Lady Rockets were edged by two points in overtime to the eventual conference champion Hamlet Middle School Lady Red Rams. But head coach Teresa Mason’s team will get a shot at redemption when the two schools meet in Thursday’s postseason finale with the title on the line.
In order to get there, however, a tough No. 4 Ellerbe Middle School team stood in Rockingham’s way on Monday. The two squared off in the semifinal round of the playoffs, with the home Lady Rockets managing a 52-24 win to advance.
Breaking out for a game-high 24 points was sixth grader Jamyia Lindsey, who tied Ellerbe’s entire team score. Teammate Keyoni Nichols netted eight points in the win, while C’Nedra and C’Niya Hinson both contributed six points of their own.
Rounding out the scoring for Rockingham (10-0) were Edriana Davis (three points), Joy Styles and Allie Rodgers (two points each) and Alex Poplin added a free throw.
For Ellerbe (6-5) and head coach Derek Anderson, it was eighth grader Nyla Stroman who scored a team-high nine points in the loss. Fellow eighth graders Curtia Crump and Chloe Nunn contributed seven and six points, respectively. Also getting on the board for the Lady Wildcats was Lakeisha Little with two points.
Prior to last season’s early exit, Mason had led the Lady Rockets to six-straight SEMSAC postseason titles. A new streak can start when they will look to return to championship glory on Thursday against No. 2 Hamlet. Tip-off against the two in-county rivals is set for 4 p.m. inside Rockingham’s gymnasium.
