HAMLET — The second round of the rivalry between the Hamlet and Rockingham girls’ basketball teams went to the Lady Rockets on Tuesday.
Closing regular-season play, Rockingham remained perfect on the season with a 44-17 victory over the Lady Red Rams.
It was a big second half that helped the Lady Rockets improve to 4-0 on the year, which saw the visiting team outscore Hamlet 30-4 in the closing two quarters.
Two Lady Rockets hit double figures in the win. J’Nasia Neal scored a game-high 20 points, while teammate Jamyia Lindsey tacked on 15 points. Only one other player for Rockingham found the basket, and it was Madisen Jackson for nine points.
Hamlet’s O’Rena Drake led the way in scoring for the Lady Red Rams, netting six points, while Hayden Robinson added five points. Teammates Saquanna Bostick and Jakayla Steele each had three points.
“We played a good first half, but we missed a bunch of shots and had too many turnovers against Rockingham in the second half,” Hamlet head coach Mitch Coe said. “Our girls put forth a tremendous amount of effort and played with a lot of heart and energy.”
Rockingham led 14-13 at the halftime break, but eight points from Lindsey and five points from Neal in the third helped break it open. Jackson added two more points in the frame to give the Lady Rockets a 29-15 lead.
Bostic and Drake would each score a field goal for Hamlet’s four second-half points. Neal sealed the win with 13 points in the fourth quarter, including five field goals and a three-pointer.
No. 1 Rockingham will host No. 2 Hamlet (2-2) in the Richmond County championship game on Thursday at 3:30 p.m.
