Tuesday’s girls’ basketball rewind: No. 2 Charlotte Catholic holds off No. 5 Independence
Charlotte Catholic, No. 2 in The Observer’s Sweet 16 poll, withstood two late pushes from No. 5 Independence at home Tuesday, winning 49-43 and staying unbeaten in Southwestern 4A conference play.
Charlotte Catholic led by nine points early in the fourth quarter, and looked comfortable, until Independence scored on back-to-back possessions to narrow the gap. The Patriots eventually got to within a possession.
UNC commit Blanca Thomas expected a run. The Charlotte Catholic star and top 50 national recruit said she knew Independence wasn’t going to go away. Thomas finished with 17 points, 16 rebounds and two blocks.
“It’s all about keeping our composure,” Thomas said. “When you can’t keep your composure, those runs they made can get to you. We knew it was going to be a back-and-forth game.”
The game was also very physical.
Thomas handled that well, too. She converted a 3-point play late to boost her team’s lead to two possessions.
“We like to come together as a team during every dead ball and calm each other down,” Thomas said. “You’re not going to get every call, so you can’t get too worked up over that.”
The win gives Catholic a two-game lead over Independence in the conference standings, with four games to play. Thomas definitely wants the regular-season title and the No. 1 playoff seed that comes with it, but she said her team has plenty of reasons to stay focused.
“We’ve still got the conference tournament and we will probably see (Independence) again,” Thomas said. “So, it’s important for us not to get too high and stay hungry.”
Tuesday’s #BIG5 top performers
Eriyanna Anthony, Sugar Creek Charter: In a 60-15 win over Queens Grant, Anthony, a freshman, had 22 points, 10 steals, five rebounds and two assists.
Lauren French, South Point: In a 68-46 win over Gastonia Forestview, French had a career-high 16 points and 10 rebounds.
Christian Johnson, Cuthbertson: In a 59-56 win over Union County rival Sun Valley, Johnson, a freshman, scored a career-high 26 points.
Ally Smith, North Lincoln: Smith helped her team rally from a 16-0 deficit to Hickory to win 48-38. She had 15 points, six steals, three assists and two rebounds.
Jerin Truesdale, Myers Park: In a 68-41 win over Palisades, Truesdale had 22 points, 15 rebounds and seven assists.
Talking Preps: Realignment questions
Tuesday’s girls’ box scores
▪ Includes Observer Sweet 16 rankings
NO. 1 LAKE NORMAN 80, AL BROWN 41
Lake Norman 27 20 20 13 — 80
AL Brown 6 11 17 7 — 41
LAKE NORMAN 80 — Kelsey Rhyne 21, Samantha Shehan 18, Addison Sirianni 13, Alexis Shehan 8, Kaylee Ellis 7, Adason Buoniconti 3, Emma Kennerly 4, Kendyll Moore 2, Aliya Williams 4
AL BROWN 41 — Flood 13, Saulkner 11, Stevens 11, Bradley 6
Record: Lake Norman 17-1
NO. 2 CHARLOTTE CATHOLIC 49, NO. 5 INDEPENDENCE 43
Catholic 13 7 14 15 – 49
Independence 11 4 10 18 – 43
CHARLOTTE CATHOLIC 49 – Blanca Thomas 17, McKain 9, Fava 9, Gough 8, Kernodle 3, Shea 2, McArdle 1
INDEPENDENCE 43 – Kamryn Kitchen 12, Brimmer 9, Worthy 8, C. Moss 7, H. Moss 5, Carson 4
Records: Catholic 16-3, 8-0; Independence 14-5, 5-2
Notable: For Catholic, Blanca Thomas had 17 points, 16 rebounds, and two blocks. Olivia Fava had nine points, five rebounds, and four assists.
NO. 3 MALLARD CREEK 102, HOPEWELL 5
Mallard Creek 46 26 25 5 — 102
Hopewell 1 1 3 0 — 5
MALLARD CREEK 102 — Elle Stone 18, Lili Booker 24, My’asia Young 12, Biosse 8, Briana Easterling 10, J. Stone 6, Olivia Robertson 10, McGuire 9, Tendall 4, Burleigh 1, Campbell 2
HOPEWELL 5 — Troutman 1, Stroud 3, Studer 1
Notable: For Mallard Creek, junior Elle Stone (18 points, five steals, two rebounds, two assists), senior Lili Booker (24 points, five rebounds, four assists, four steals, two blocks), sophomore My’asia Young (12 points, seven steals) had strong games.
Record: Mallard Creek 15-3, League 8-0
NO. 4 CANNON SCHOOL 70, CHARLOTTE COUNTRY DAY 51
Country Day 10 15 9 15 — 51
Cannon 12 15 22 21 — 70
COUNTRY DAY 51 — Margaret Blythe 17, Same Vanderhave 16, Olive Bigham 11, Turner 2, Brown 2, Starnes 2, Crane 1
CANNON 70 — Larkins 3, McCorckle 12, Morrow 17, Love 2, Thompson 5, Drayton 19, Nakamura 2, Busby 10
Record: CCDS 15-9
NO. 6 MYERS PARK 68, PALISADES 41
Palisades 7 3 11 20 — 41
Myers Park 17 16 16 19 — 68
PALISADES 41 — Brooklyn Young 16, Tynilla Simpkins 10, Charis 7, Abdullah 3, Brown 5
MYERS PARK 68 — Jerin Truesdale 22, Laura Lassiter 16, Summer Thomason 10, Holcomb 3, Wilson 5, Evers 6, Reich 2, Barner 4
Records: Palisades 8-12, 2-5; Myers Park 19-1, 6-0
Notable: For Myers Park, Jerin Truesdale had 22 points, 15 rebounds, seven assists, and Laura Lassiter had 16 points, five rebounds, five assists and four steals.
NO. 7 EAST LINCOLN 65, STATESVILLE 17
East Lincoln 29 13 14 9 — 65
Statesville 0 6 11 0 — 17
EAST LINCOLN 65 — Kiara Anderson 22, Lane Pethel 10, E. Montanari 9, N. Atkins 8, M. Schmitz 8, A. Hege 4, M. Matz 2, B. Miller 2
STATESVILLE 17 — D. Wilder 7, I. Reid 3, A. Blair-Morrison 3, C. Ward 2, S. Davidson 2
Notable: For East Lincoln, Kiara Anderson had 22 points, eight rebounds, seven assists, seven steals and a block. Lane Pethel had 10 points, 15 rebounds.
Records: East Lincoln 18-1, 9-0; Statesville 2-17, 1-8
NO. 9 NORTH MECKLENBURG 74, HARDING 27
North Meck 27 16 24 7 — 74
Harding 9 9 5 4 — 27
NORTH MECK 74 — Lenise Joesph 24, Boston Bates 14, Briasia Rowe 10, Pimentel 6, Rivera 5, Hoover 4, Knox 3, Fullenwider 3, Reid 3, Smith 2
HARDING 27 — Overby 12, Garris 8, Reaves 4, Chapman 3
Records: North Meck 16-3, 8-1
NO. 11 HICKORY RIDGE 57, MOORESVILLE 24
Hickory Ridge 12 5 24 16 — 57
Mooresville 9 5 2 8 — 24
HICKORY RIDGE 57 — S Gidney 16, M. Gidney 14, Leathers 11, K. Woodward 6, C. Woodward 5, Anderson 3, Dukey 2
MOORESVILLE 24 — Crunn 6, Inman 5, Lane 5, Lorne 4, Wise-Smith 3, Burgette 1
Records: Hickory Ridge 16-3, Mooresville 3-16
NO. 12 PROVIDENCE DAY 67, CHARLOTTE CHRISTIAN 32
Providence Day 18 18 21 10 — 67
Charlotte Christian 4 14 8 6 — 32
PROVIDENCE DAY 67 — Jaida McClure 18, Jane Updyke 10, Katelyn Ramsden 14, Fyans 6, Nowlin 2, Stuart 5, Levine 5, Dennison 3, Swinson 4
CHARLOTTE CHRISTIAN 32 — Marwell-Wright 9, Lee 7, Dermas 7, D. Kay 2, S.Fair 2, Bakman 2, P. Fair 2
Notable: Providence Day sophomores Jane UpDyke (10) and Katelyn Ramsden (14, tied) had career-highs in scoring.
NO. 13 ARDREY KELL 64, OLYMPIC 34
Ardrey Kell 18 15 19 12 — 64
Olympic 8 5 6 15 — 34
ARDREY KELL 64 — Autumn Washington 17 Molly Burns 14 Karly Glahn 15 McCoy 4 Keenan 4 Fleck 3 Collins 2 Sahayaraj 2 Mapp 2 Veal 1
OLYMPIC 34 — Terry 5 Ashborne 6 James 10 Johnson 2 Franklin 2 Shaw 9
NO. 14 ROCK HILL SOUTH POINTE 61, LANCASTER 46
South Pointe: 11 24 19 7 — 61
Lancaster: 12 14 16 4 — 46
SOUTH POINTE 61 — Lucas 13, Morris 15, Orr 5, Hinnant 6, Woods 11, Land 7, Hardy 4.
Record: South Pointe 21-2
Notable: South Pointe has won 18 straight games. On Tuesday, Kaleigh Lucas (13 points, four steals, two rebounds), Serenity Woods (11 points, four rebounds, two assists) and Victoria Starr Morris (15 points, six rebounds, two assists) led the Stallions.
BUTLER 51, PROVIDENCE 39
Butler 23 10 10 8 — 51
Providence 8 11 8 12 — 39
BUTLER 51 — Brooklyn Saunders 17, Charlotte Hasson 17, Henderson 5, Williams 5, Campbell 2, Stitt 2
PROVIDENCE 39 — Linsey Nolan 15, Whitten 11, Hall 4, Roberts 7, Brooks 2
Notable: For Providence, Linsey Nolan records a double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds. Marlee Whitten also had a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds
Record: Providence is 9 - 10
CREST 77, NORTH GASTON 41
NORTH GASTON 41 — Brown 6, Thomas 5, Jaleila Littlejohn 25, Crocker 2
CREST 77 — O. Holland 27, H. Womack 25
CUTHBERTSON 59, SUN VALLEY 56
Cuthbertson 18 15 15 11 — 59
Sun Valley 11 11 12 22 — 56
CUTHBERTSON 59 — Christian Johnson 26, Christian Mundy 14, Riley Willie 5, Alexis Juhl 5, Amayah Rogers 3, Ava Beals 3, Cam Voss 3
SUN VALLEY 56 — Vaughn 17, Robinson 15, Meaders 8, Bradley 10, Henry 6
GARINGER 56, EAST MECKLENBURG 31
East Meck 10 6 7 8 — 31
Garinger 9 16 15 16 — 56
GARINGER 56 — Kim’May Kelly 16, Raziah Mitchell-Williams 12, Zanovia Davis 12, Dillard 6, Patterson 4, Figuroa-Burgos 3, Dosanttos 3
Notable: For Garinger, Kim’Mya Kelly (16 points, four steals, three rebounds), Razaiah Mitchell-Williams (12 points, 18 rebounds, seven steals, two blocks) had big games.
Record: Garinger 12-8, 3-5
12-8 (3-5 SW4A)
LINCOLN CHARTER 60, LANGTREE CHARTER 13
Langtree 1 0 3 9 — 13
Lincoln Charter 24 20 7 9 — 60
LANGTREE CHARTER 13 — Chambers 6, Byer 5, Hazlitt 2
LINCOLN CHARTER 60 — Taylor Riggenbach 10, Kallie Lusk 8, Symphanie Stevens 7, Brenna Barbier 6, Samantha Ayers 5, Claire David 5, Kaylyn Cherry 5, Lillie Merrill 4, Olexa King 3, Abigal Wrenn 2
Notable: For Lincoln Charter, sophomore Taylor Riggenbach led all scorers with 10 points. She also added five assists and four rebounds. Kallie Lusk added eight points, five rebounds and two steals. Senior Olexa King made her first career 3-pointer.
Record: Lincoln Charter 13-5, 6-2
NORTH LINCOLN 48, HICKORY 38
North Lincoln 6 11 18 13 — 48
Hickory 17 8 6 7 — 38
Notable: For North Lincoln, which rallied from a 16-0 deficit, Ally Smith (15 points, six steals, three assists, two rebounds), Hailey Hagler (14 points, five assists, four rebounds, three steals) had big games. Madi Black’s 3-point shot with less than two minutes to play put the game away.
Records: North Lincoln 13-6; Hickory 11-8
PIEDMONT CHARTER 68, VALOR PREP 14
Piedmont: 28 23 9 8 — 68
Valor Prep: 6 0 6 2 — 14
PIEDMONT 68 — Lyric Brown 20, Evie East 12, Bree Phillips 9, Aubree Cammer 8, Allasha Houser 4, Addison Berry 4, Celeste Cobb 3, Natalie Faris 2, Julianna East 2, Micah Brown 2, Malacai Brown 2
VALOR PREP 14 — L. McCall 6, J. Borden 6, K. Kerr 2
SOUTH POINT 68, FORESTVIEW 46
South Point 20 11 22 15 — 68
Forestview 10 17 3 16 — 46
SOUTH POINT 68 — Lauren French 16, Amya Graham 14, Maddie Frank 11, Lexi Birtwistle 10, Jossilyn Wallace 7, Dajshia Foust 7, Claire Frank 3
FORESTVIEW 46 — Miangel Thompson 15, Tralyn Phillips 9, Megan baker 5, Blair Riley 5, Kendall manning 3, Amani Neely 2, Victoria Duncan 2, Molly Forgan 1
Notable: For South Point, Amya Graham had her 17th double-double with 20 rebounds and 14 points. Lauren French earned her career high in points with 16, and added 10 rebounds and 3 blocks. Lexi Birtwistle also had a double-double with 10 rebounds and 10 points. Jossilyn Wallace added 10 rebounds and 4 assists.
Record: South Point 13-6, 8-1
SUGAR CREEK CHARTER 60, QUEENS GRANT 15
Sugar Creek 20 14 13 13 — 60
Queens Grant- 4 5 2 4 — 15
SUGAR CREEK 60 — Mallette 4, Allure Bishop 20, Eriyanna Anthony 22, Thompson 2, Infiniti Green 5, Chisolm 5, Nabinett 2
QUEENS GRANT 15 — Tateo 1 Graham 6 Hartis 6 Sanchez 2
Notable: For Sugar Creek Charter, freshman Eriyanna Anthony led all scorers with 22 points. 10 steals five rebounds and two assists. Freshman Allure Bishop had 20 points, five rebounds, four steals and four assists.
WEST CABARRUS 56, COX MILL 49
West Cabarrus 10 17 9 20 — 56
Cox Mill 10 6 17 16 — 49
WEST CABARRUS 56 — Shariah White 21, Tyler Collins 13, Jillian Simmons 10, Kaiya Bond 10, McNeil 2
COX MILL 49 — Lauren Farrell 11, Michelle Alexander 11, Saraun 6, Richardson 5, Betz 6, Gibson 2, Bellauny 8
Notable: For West Cabarrus, Shariah White had 21 points, six rebounds, three steals. Tyler Collins had 13 points, four rebounds, four steals, two assists. Freshman Jillian Simmons had 10 points, five assists, four rebounds and four steals, and Kaiya Bond had 10 points, six rebounds, three steals.
Record: West Cabarrus 11-8, 5-3
Upcoming schedule
Wednesday
Queen City 3A-4A
Mallard Creek at West Mecklenburg
SoMeck 4A
Olympic at Harding
CISAA
Charlotte Country Day at Providence Day (boys)
Metro 1A
Carolina International at Sugar Creek Charter
Nonconference
1 of 1 Prep at Legacy Early College (SC) (girls)
Charlotte Catholic at South Mecklenburg
Charlotte Elite Academy at Lab Prep (boys)
Monroe at Weddington
Oak Ridge Military (VA) at Bonnie Cone Academy (boys)
S.C. Region 3 4A
York at Catawba Ridge
S.C. Region 4 3A
Emerald at Chester
S.C. Region 5 2A
Andrew Jackson at Central Pageland
Thursday
Metrolina Athletic Conference
SouthLake Christian at Northside Christian (girls)
Westminster Catawba at Concord Academy
Nonconference
North Hills Christian at Statesville Christian
Queen’s Grant Charter at Grace Academy (girls)
S.C. Region 4 1A
Rock Hill Riverwalk at Great Falls (boys)
Friday
Queen City 3A-4A
Harding at Chambers
Hopewell at West Charlotte
Mallard Creek at North Mecklenburg
West Mecklenburg at Hough
SoMeck 4A
Ardrey Kell at Berry Academy
South Mecklenburg at Palisades
Southwestern 4A
Butler at East Mecklenburg
Charlotte Catholic at Rocky River
Garinger at Independence
CISAA
Charlotte Christian at Cannon School
Charlotte Latin at Charlotte Country Day
Covenant Day at Providence Day (boys)
Greater Metro 4 4A
A.L. Brown at Cox Mill
South Iredell at Hickory Ridge
West Cabarrus at Lake Norman
Southern Carolina 4A
Cuthbertson at Marvin Ridge
Porter Ridge at Weddington
Big South 3A
Crest at Ashbrook
Hunter Huss at Kings Mountain
North Gaston at Forestview
Stuart Cramer at South Point
South Piedmont 3A
Concord at West Rowan
East Rowan at South Rowan
Jay M. Robinson at Northwest Cabarrus
Lake Norman Charter at West Rowan
Western Foothills 3A
East Lincoln at West Iredell
North Lincoln at North Iredell
Statesville at Fred T. Foard
St. Stephens at Hickory
Rocky River 2A-3A
Anson County at Parkwood
Monroe at West Stanly
Piedmont at Forest Hills
Metrolina Athletic Conference
Gaston Day at Gaston Christian
Hickory Grove Christian at Metrolina Christian
Northside Christian at SouthLake Christian
Foothills Athletic Association
Statesville Christian at Salem Baptist (boys)
University Christian at Hickory Christian
Southern Piedmont Athletic Association
United Faith Christian at North Hills Christian
Victory Christian at Lake Norman Christian (boys)
Catawba Valley 2A
Bandys at Lincolnton
East Burke at Newton-Conover
West Caldwell at Maiden
West Lincoln at Bunker Hill
Catawba Shores 1A-2A
Bradford Prep at Community School of Davidson
Christ the King at Corvian Community
Langtree Charter at Mountain Island Charter
Lincoln Charter at Pine Lake Prep
Southern Piedmont 1A-2A
Bessemer City at Cherryville
East Gaston at Thomas Jefferson Academy
Highland Tech at Shelby
Yadkin Valley 1A-2A
Mount Pleasant at South Stanly
North Stanly at Gray Stone Day
Union Academy at Albemarle
Metro 1A
Carolina International at Valor Prep
Piedmont Community Charter at Queen’s Grant Charter
Nonconference
1 of 1 Academy at The Burlington School (boys)
1 of 1 Academy at Winston-Salem Christian (girls)
Arborbrook Christian at South Charlotte Thunder (girls)
Carmel Christian at Asheville School (boys)
Elevation Prep at Oak Hill (VA) Red (boys)
Greater Cabarrus Stallions at Forsyth Home Educators
Jackson Day at Sugar Creek Charter
Legacy Early College (SC) at Providence Day (girls)
S.C. Region 3 5A
Clover at Blythewood
Rock Hill at Nation Ford
Spring Valley at Fort Mill
S.C. Region 3 4A
Indian Land at South Pointe
Lancaster at Catawba Ridge
York at Northwestern
S.C. Region 4 3A
Clinton at Chester
Union County at Emerald
S.C. Region 5 2A
Andrew Jackson at North Central
Buford at Central Pageland
Chesterfield at Cheraw
S.C. Region 4 1a
C.A. Johnson at Governor’s School
McBee at Lewisville
S.C. nonconference
Legion Collegiate at Providence Classical (boys)
York Prep at Westminster Catawba
Saturday
CISAA
Charlotte Latin at Covenant Day (boys, 12)
Nonconference
Carmel Christian at Rabun Gap School (GA), (boys, 3:30)
Oak Hill (VA) Regional at Elevation Prep, (boys, 3)
S.C. Region 4 1A
Governor’s School at Great Falls (boys, 1)
Sunday
No games scheduled
