Rachel Lia had another magnificent offensive performance, netting a game-high 24 points, but it was Lafayette’s defense in the second half that keyed the Rams’ 50-42 win over Grafton on the road Thursday.
The Clippers, winners of the last four regular season Bay Rivers District titles, led 29-26 at the half but struggled to score during the final two quarters.
Credit much of that to Lafayette, which employed a triangle-and-two defense that held Grafton to 13 total points in the second half and its top two scorers, Christa Hall and Hayley Marshall, scoreless during the final period.
Hall got hot during the second quarter when she scored 10 of her team-high 13 points, but for the most part, Lafayette guard Kenya Holiday held her in check. Lia marked Marshall all game and held the sharp-shooting guard to four points.
“It was an awesome victory,” Rams’ coach Chris Brown said. “Anytime you can beat a Tommy Bayse-coached team, it’s huge. They made a push early, but we were able to stay poised and shut them down in the fourth quarter.”
For Lia, a transfer from Hampton Roads Academy, it was her second-straight 20-point outing of the season. Megan Wiltshire added nine points, none bigger than her 3-pointer with a little under two minutes to play, and Holiday added eight.
Johnson’s Monster Double-Double Leads Jamestown Past New Kent
New Kent had no answer for Jamestown’s Jamiyah Johnson, who had a career night pulling down 26 rebounds to go along with 19 points as the Eagles defeated the visiting Trojans 36-27 on Thursday.
The Eagles (1-1) led by two points, 34-32, after three quarters before outscoring New Kent 12-5 during the final eight minutes to pull away.
Warhill Pulls Away Early to Beat York
Kieran McClure knocked down six 3-pointers and finished with 27 points, 6 rebounds, 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 steals as Warhill won 54-37 on the road at York on Thursday.
Olivia Schultz added 10 points and eight rebounds, and Kasey Grainer finished with 10 points and six rebounds for the Lions (2-0, 2-0 BRD), who led 40-19 after three quarters.
Rakeema Willis’ 19 points paced host York (1-1, 1-1 BRD).
Bruton Falls to Poquoson on the Road
Bruton got 14 points from Naya Samuel and 11 points from Kelsey Sluss in a 57-29 road loss at Poquoson on Thursday.
Sydney Davis (12 points) was one of eight players who scored for Poquoson, which led 30-10 at the half.
