ROCKINGHAM – A scary moment occurred in the fourth quarter of Rockingham Middle School’s girls basketball game with Carver Middle on Thursday. Rockingham’s Kaylan Parsons and Carver’s Camiree Campbell collided head-to-head while going after a rebound sending both players to the floor in an unsettling moment that required athletic trainers and school officials to provide aid.
It took about a minute for Campbell to get to her feet and be escorted back to the Carver bench, but Parsons remained on the floor for several minutes as those in attendance watched in concern.
Fans of both teams applauded as Parsons was lifted to her feet and assisted off of the court. The unfortunate collision was about the only thing that went wrong for the Rockingham eighth grader, as Parsons recorded a double-double (11 points, 10 rebounds) leading the No. 1 Lady Rockets to a 30-13 conference tournament victory over the visiting No. 4 Lady Eagles.
With the win, Rockingham improved to 10-0 on the season and advance to the Southeastern Middle School Athletic Conference (SEMSAC) tournament championship game on February 16. The team awaits the winner of No. 2 East Hoke (8-1) and No. 3 West Hoke (8-2), which will play on Monday.
Madisen Jackson was once again the catalyst of the team’s success on Thursday. After Carver’s first shot attempt missed its mark, Jackson took the rebound and went coast-to-coast, netting a layup for the game’s first points just 30 seconds in.
Later, Parsons hauled in a Jackson miss and was fouled on the putback attempt. She connected on one of her two free throw attempts giving the Lady Rockets an early 3-0 advantage.
Carver’s Asia Hicks and Khloe Radford answered with a pair of putbacks to put the visitors ahead by one at 4-3 with 1:45 left in the opening quarter. A free throw by Jackson and a layup by Parsons in the final minute gave Rockingham a 6-4 advantage after one complete.
Jackson blocked Carver’s first shot attempt of the second quarter and Parsons netted a putback on the Lady Rockets’ ensuing possession to increase the Rockingham lead to 4. Zamiyah Watson and Diamond Swiney scored on back-to-back possessions for the Lady Eagles, knotting the game at 8-all with 6:40 remaining until the half.
Ten seconds later, Little took the inbound pass and tossed a half-court bullet to Parsons who was all alone under the net for an easy two. Little was rewarded for the assist 12 seconds later.
Jackson stripped the ball away from the Lady Eagles and passed it forward to Little who caught it in stride and laid it in. Little’s basket gave the Lady Rockets a 12-8 lead with 6:17 remaining, but it also triggered a five and a half minute scoring drought.
Addison Butler, who accumulated four rebounds in the final two minutes of the second quarter, banked in the last basket of the half to send Rockingham to the locker room with a 14-8 lead.
Following the break Radford swished through a floater for Carver just 13 seconds into the second half. The next 8 points were scored by the Lady Rockets with Parsons (4), Little (2) and Audicy Rush (2) all contributing to the run. Swiney added a free throw for Carver, but the third period ended with Rockingham in control at 21-11.
A pair of free throws from Hicks and Radford in the fourth cut the Carver deficit back to single digits, but the Lady Rockets closed out the game on a 9-0 run for the win.
In addition to Parsons 11-point performance for Rockingham, Jackson scored 9, Little had 4, and Butler, Rush and Za’Ryah Williams each chipped in with 2-apiece.
Radford led the way for the Lady Eagles with 5, Hicks and Swiney each had 3, and Butler added 2.
This game marks the second time this week that Jackson was not the leading scorer for the Lady Rockets affirming an earlier season statement by Rockingham coach Wandesha Jackson that this is a “complete team”. Kaniah Little scored a game-high 13 points in Rockingham’s win over Sandy Grove on Monday.