Sonny Dearth
02-26-2008, 11:04 PM
James Monroe’s offensive rebounding and Lafayette’s foul trouble were too much for the Rams to overcome in Fredericksburg in a first-round game of the Region I tournament. JM beat Lafayette 64-53 to reach the regional semifinals and move one victory from the state Group AA tournament.
Standout guard Addie Williams led Lafayette with 15 points, but she had three fouls in the first half and picked up her fourth with 2:48 left in the third quarter. Teammate Sheneka Ferrell had eight points, seven assists and seven rebounds.
JM guard Kirastin Cole had a game-high 18 points — all in the second half. Bilnita Armstead had 16 points and 10 rebounds, and Connie Harrison-Lewis had 12 points and 13 rebounds.
"Those three are our go-to players," James Monroe coach Julian Bumbrey told The Free-Lance Star of Fredericksburg. "When people scout us, they might say, ‘We’re going to stop Bilnita.’ But you’ve got to stop all three of those girls."
Lafayette cut JM’s halftime lead from 30-22 to 36-32 early in the second, but the Yellow Jackets’ numerous points on putbacks enabled them to extend the lead.
"We gave up the offensive rebound too often tonight," Lafayette coach Charles Brown told The Free Lance-Star of Fredericksburg. "It’s hurt us all year and it came back to hurt us tonight. Hopefully the girls have learned a lesson from this."
Also, Brown added, "We didn’t have a lot of turnovers, but when we did have them, the timing was bad."
Standout guard Addie Williams led Lafayette with 15 points, but she had three fouls in the first half and picked up her fourth with 2:48 left in the third quarter. Teammate Sheneka Ferrell had eight points, seven assists and seven rebounds.
JM guard Kirastin Cole had a game-high 18 points — all in the second half. Bilnita Armstead had 16 points and 10 rebounds, and Connie Harrison-Lewis had 12 points and 13 rebounds.
"Those three are our go-to players," James Monroe coach Julian Bumbrey told The Free-Lance Star of Fredericksburg. "When people scout us, they might say, ‘We’re going to stop Bilnita.’ But you’ve got to stop all three of those girls."
Lafayette cut JM’s halftime lead from 30-22 to 36-32 early in the second, but the Yellow Jackets’ numerous points on putbacks enabled them to extend the lead.
"We gave up the offensive rebound too often tonight," Lafayette coach Charles Brown told The Free Lance-Star of Fredericksburg. "It’s hurt us all year and it came back to hurt us tonight. Hopefully the girls have learned a lesson from this."
Also, Brown added, "We didn’t have a lot of turnovers, but when we did have them, the timing was bad."