LAKE WORTH – The Rising Stars Athletics girls basketball tournament championship rounds finale hosted John I. Leonard, Miami Northwestern, Palm Beach Central, and Seminole Ridge.
Red Girls Championship Round: John I. Leonard and Miami Northwestern
The first quarter was very slow as each team seemed to be feeling each other out. The defensive showcase was superb as the first frame ended with a score of 11-7. John I. Leonard’s Angelina Wimbley and Zaida Gonzalez would give their team the momentum and lead into the second.
Miami Northwestern would go up by five in the second after a three-point shot by Treciyah Mitchell to make it a score of 16-11. The Bulls would go on an 11-0 run before Gonzalez knocked down a two in traffic for the Lancers.
The Bulls would continue their dominance throughout the second as they went into the half with a 25-14 lead over John I. Leonard.
Northwestern’s Mary Delgado led all scorers with 11 points at the half.
Miami Northwestern would put John I. Leonard away in the second half on the back of Delgado, who was the X factor for the Bulls as she orchestrated the entire offense in a 53-24 win.
“It’s a big win for our program,” Miami Northwestern head coach Patterson said. “We’ve been reeling a little bit and we took this tournament to get better for the second half of the season. I think we took a major step by coming up here and competing with some pretty good teams by coming home with that championship.”
Delgado led all scorers with 21 points.
“I had plays on defense and good plays on offense,” Delgado said. “Twenty-one (21) points is okay, but I know I can score more. We didn’t come here taking a blank trip. We weren’t going back to (Miami) without a championship.”
Black Girls Championship Round: Seminole Ridge and Palm Beach Central
Seminole Ridge came out firing and held a 20-10 lead over Palm Beach Central. Ridge’s first quarter lead was fueled by Aneshea Cason with her 8 points.
The Hawks would play suffocating defense in the second quarter and be up 30-14 with a little under three minutes left in the second. Central would make a late charge in the second to close the score gap to 33-22 at half.
Cason led all scorers with 13 points at the half, while Palm Beach Central’s Alaysha Iwais led her team with 9 points at the half.
Ridge had a solid 16-point lead heading into the fourth at 46-30. The Hawks didn’t let up in the fourth as they went up 20 points with a little over five minutes left in the game.
The offensive showcase would continue in the fourth as Ridge was able to win by a final score of 61-38.
Cason lead all scorers with 15 points and Jahnae Midget added 13 points.
Yoslene Quiles led Central with 12 points.
Seminole Ridge’s tournament victory marks the first time in school history it has accomplished such a feat. Ridge currently holds an 11-2 record.
Seminole Ridge head coach Hudson would comment on the emotional victory.
“Seminole Ridge has come a long way,” Hudson said. “We don’t take any team for granted. Last year we had teams lining up to schedule us because they thought it was going to be an easy win, we went 15-10. This year we’re 11-2 and it’s been a humbling experience. We thank God for it everyday.”
