CLASS 6A GIRLS SOUTH FINAL: Park Crossing reaches state semis with win over Pike Road
Pike Road’s Jazz Johnson gets by Park Crossing Maliyah Meeks for a shot in Tuesday’s Class 6A South Regional final at Garrett Coliseum. (Tim Gayle)
By TIM GAYLE
The Pike Road girls survived the first quarter, playing a deliberate style that kept Saniya Jackson and her Park Crossing teammates from running the floor.
The second quarter was a different matter.
Park Crossing broke loose from a 4-2 deficit with 22 points in the second quarter, taking command of the South Regional championship game on the way to a 52-30 victory over the Patriots on Tuesday morning at Garrett Coliseum.
Park Crossing (28-1) will play Huffman (24-6) in the state semifinals on Feb. 28 at noon at Birmingham’s Legacy Arena.
“It’s what we talk about all the time, if we turn the ball over, that’s what they want to do,” Pike Road coach Barry Fencher said. “In the first quarter, we took care of the ball and got them where we wanted. I knew they were going to get impatient on defense and start reaching (and fouling). But any time we get lazy with the ball and turn it over, they get in transition and they’re hard to beat.”
Park Crossing coach Freeah Smith admitted her players were getting impatient with the Patriots’ style of play in the first quarter.
“It was tough over there (on the Park Crossing bench),” she said. “I just had to remind them, ‘Do your job and we’ll be fine.’ Maliyah (Meeks) got us started on the block and it just opened things up for everyone else. It was a total team effort.”
Meeks was crucial in keeping the Patriots’ top player, Jazz Johnson, from being much of a factor in the paint and the second quarter unraveled quickly for Pike Road as the turnovers -- and Saniya Jackson layups -- started mounting.
“She didn’t hurt us, really,” Fencher said. “The other people hurt us, out rebounding us, getting second shots. I thought Amaya (Baker) and KJ (Fencher) did a good job keeping her in front of them. But when they turn it over, they can’t get back in transition because she’s fast as lightning.
“They just weren’t ready to play when they went out there. They threw the ball away, turning it over. That has been one of our strong points. I’ve got three or four people that can come off the bench and give us some minutes.”
Jackson was named the regional most valuable player after finishing with 18 points, nine rebounds and six steals. Tariah Magee added 15 points, six steals, three assists and four rebounds and Meeks had 14 points and eight rebounds.
Johnson led Pike Road (25-7) with nine points and nine rebounds as the Patriots finished the year with four losses to the Thunderbirds, two to St. James and one to Prattville Christian -- all teams that are still competing for state championships.
“We had a great season,” Fencher said. “Everybody we lost to is still in the tournament. With all of them coming back except for Jazz, we’ve got some good young players.”
Park Crossing, meanwhile, made its sixth consecutive postseason appearance under Smith, including four trips to the regionals and now the Thunderbirds’ second trip to the state tournament.
“The motivation is to do something we haven’t done, win a state championship,” she said.
Joining Jackson on the regional all-tournament team were Johnson, Magee, Meeks and Kamryn Kelly.