Dillon’s Lady Wildcats went undefeated in the Robeson County Shootout, defeating Lumberton 58-53 for their second straight Shootout title on Saturday, December 20.
The tournament began on Wednesday, December 17, with the Lady Wildcats traveling to Fairmont, North Carolina, to take on Richmond County, dominating the court for a 73-25 win.
Richmond briefly held a 4-2 lead before the Lady Wildcats broke loose for a 30-0 run to take firm control of the game in the first quarter. The Wildcats went 15-9 in the second and 19-7 in the third, capping the win with a 9-6 fourth quarter.
Dillon was led by Jelissa Fentzlaff with 13 points, and Adriana McCollum, Shar’Asia Samuel, and Khamele Manning who each added 12.
The Raiders were led by Jarae Nicholson with 10 points. Veronica Griffin and Zelda McLaughlin each earned five; Deon Everette, 4; and Zariah Williams, 1.
On Friday, December 19, the Lady Wildcats took on South Robeson in Rowland, North Carolina, and earned a 70-43 win over the Mustangs to advance to the championship game.
Dillon took a 15-11 lead in the first quarter and went 15-10 in the second for a 30-21 lead at the half. A 28-9 third quarter gave the Wildcats more than enough to seal the win, despite a 13-12 rally from the Mustangs in the fourth.
Da’Kerhia Samuel lead the Wildcats with a game-high 19 points and Dria Campbell added 13 in the win. Kendra McLeod earned 10 points; Tejah Breeden, 5; Adriana McCollum, 5; Yolanda Campbell, 3; Shimya Sowells, 3; Kimbell, 3; and Jelissa Fentzlaff, 1.
South Robeson was led by Carrington Mitchell with a team-high 19 points. A’Terria Quick added 15; Drawhorn, 2; McLeod, 4; Werrell, 1; and Hunt, 1.
The win advanced the Wildcats to the tournament championship to face Lumberton, who advanced with an 85-39 win over Red Springs on Friday night.
The Lady Pirates took the lead in the first quarter, 16-15, but the Wildcats outscored Lumberton 12-8 in the second to lead 27-24 at the half. The Pirates rallied for a 14-11 third quarter, with London Johnson hitting two free throws at the end of the quarter to tie things up 38-38 heading into the fourth.
Dillon went on an 11-1 run in the start of the fourth, but Lumberton made a late 9-1 run to pull within one point of the Wildcats at 54-53. After a timeout for the Wildcats, Khamele Manning hit a two-pointer to push the Wildcats ahead 56-53. Lumberton had a chance at four three-point shots, but missed all of them. Dillon outscored Lumberton 20-15 in the fourth to seal the win.
Kendra McLeod scored a game-high 14 points, grabbed seven rebounds, and made four steals in the win for the Lady Wildcats. Shar’Asia Samuel and Khamele Manning each added 13 points; Tejah Breeden, 5; Da’Kerhia Samuel, 4; Adriana McCollum, 3; Yolanda Campbell, 3; and Jelissa Fentzlaff, 2.
Lumberton was led by London Thompson with a team-high 13 points and Najewell Ingram and Randi Bullard with 10 each. Thompson also picked up nine rebounds and Ingram grabbed 11. Mariah Locklear added eight; Jasmine McBride, 7; Destiny Hardin, 4; Kierra Page, 1.
Khamele Manning was named the tournament MVP, and Dillon’s Da’Kerhia Samuel and Kendra McLeod were each named to the All-Tournament team.
Lumberton’s Mariah Locklear and London Thompson also made the All-Tournament team, along with South Robeson’s A’terria Quick; Taya Jones of Red Springs; Jarae Nicholson of Richmond; Paige Sweeney of Purnell Swett; Marsha Clewis of Fairmont; and Kristen Locklear of St. Pauls.
The Wildcats improved to 10-1 on the season as they claimed the Shootout championship and headed into the winter break.
Dillon will be back in action on Tuesday, January 6, to host the Latta Vikings at 6:00 p.m. The Wildcats will travel to Latta on Friday, January 9, and Dillon will open region play at Aynor on Tuesday, January 13.
BOYS
In the boys half of the Robeson County Shootout, Richmond and Lumberton squared off for the championship title with Richmond earning a 74-62 win for their first ever Shootout title.
The Pirates led for most of the first half, but Richmond took over in the second and the Raiders held a double-digit lead for most of the fourth quarter.
Richmond’s Lavell Ellerbe was named the tournament MVP, with T.J. Watkins and Tre Pettigrew named to the All-Tournament team.
Dillon’s JaQuan Knowlin was also named All-Tournament, along with Lumberton’s Travis Suggs and Josh Smith; Fairmont’s Julius Caulder; Tavion Atkinson of Red Springs; Dante Burden of St. Pauls; Corbin Hunt of South Robeson; and Mark Locklear of Purnell Swett.
