ROCKINGHAM — The Rockingham Middle School boys’ and girls’ basketball teams kicked off their respective season Monday with a set of big wins over visiting Carver Middle School.
Both teams made it to the playoffs last season, and the Lady Rockets and head coach Teresa Mason are looking to duplicate another perfect season and repeat as the Southeastern Middle School Athletic Conference champions.
The Lady Rockets (1-0) took care of the Lady Eagles 42-28 to earn their first win of the year. Two players would reach double digits for Rockingham, with C’Niya Hinson leading the way with 17 points and Jamyia Lindsey adding 15 points.
Rounding out the Lady Rockets’ scoring were Keyoni Nichols (4 points), Jasmine Jennings (4 points) and MaKailah Jackson (2 points).
Mason and company will travel to West Hoke Middle School on Wednesday and begin at 4:15 p.m.
Rockets, McNeil blast past Eagles in opener
Following the girls’ win, the Rockingham boys and head coach Julius Bowden lit up the scoreboard in a 60-28 win over Carver. Eighth grader Paul McNeil, who played for Hamlet Middle School last season, netted a game-high 24 points in the win.
Teammate Jada Zimmerman would also reach double figures by adding 15 points to the score sheet. Noah Jenks contributed 7 points, James Eason scored 4 points, AJ Covington and Jaziah Liles each added 3 points and Talan Stoner and Kedreion Crump rounded things out with 2 points each.
“It was a great team win tonight,” Bowden said. “We’ve been putting a lot of time and energy on becoming better defenders and it showed tonight. The guys really locked down on defense and caused numerous turnovers that led to easy transition baskets.
“There are some areas we need to improve on, but I was pleased with everyone’s effort tonight,” he closed.
The Rockets (1-0) will also play the West Hoke Tigers on Wednesday around 5:30 p.m.
Julius Bowden and Teresa Mason contributed to this report. To submit middle school sports scores, email sports editor Kyle Pillar at kpillar@richmondobserver.com.
