2A State Championship: Andrew Jackson HS vs Christ Church

If it is one thing the girls basketball program at Christ Church Episcopal has become known for it is a winning culture. In recent seasons, the Cavaliers have won championships in the 2018-19, 2015-16 and 2014-15 seasons. Christ Church also brought home state titles in 2009 and 2010 as a Class A school. For the 2021-22 season, Andrew Jackson was the final obstacle in the way of Christ Church adding to its list of championships. The Volunteers made a late run, but the Cavaliers prevailed over Andrew Jackson by a final of 59-39 at the USC-Aiken Convocation Center. “Even the younger ones know we’re not here just to play pickup ball. We’re here to compete,” Christ Church coach Ja’Net Vicks said. “So, next year I know the younger ones are probably already talking about how they’ve got to get ready. They’ve got some big shoes to fill. So, we’re going to work hard this summer and we’re going to try to be back here again.” <strong><em>Setting an Early Tone</em></strong> Any indication on how Saturday’s 2A state championship matchup would turn out was seen in the opening minutes. Christ Church opened the contest with a 14-2 run and eventually led by 17 (22-5) after the first quarter. The Cavaliers’ lead grew to 18 at the halftime with the score being 34-16. <strong><em>A Late Run</em></strong> Even with the game all but out of reach for the Volunteers, there was still a late run coming from the participants in orange and blue. Andrew Jackson managed to outscore Christ Church by a margin of 15-9 in the final frame. <strong><em>Primetime Performers</em></strong> <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/03/IMG_4514-scaled-crop-2238x1469-1646517149.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-396758" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/03/IMG_4514-scaled-crop-2238x1469-1646517149-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="124091" first="McCall" last="King"]</strong> will depart from Christ Church as a two-time champion after playing as a Cavalier since she was in the seventh grade and also winning a state crown as a freshman. She led Christ Church with 19 points and made seven of her 11 tries from the field. The UNCW Seahawk-to-be also went a perfect five out of five from 3-point land and added seven rebounds and three assists in her final performance for Christ Church. “I think it’s just a testament to the seniors, how hard we’ve worked to build a culture of winning here and that’s the way we wanted to finish out,” King said. <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/03/IMG_4435-scaled-crop-1752x1150-1646517248.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-396762" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/03/IMG_4435-scaled-crop-1752x1150-1646517248-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="171796" first="Yasmene" last="Clark"]</strong> was also integral in the emphatic Cavaliers win. She tallied 15 points – 10 of which were put on the scoreboard in the first half. Clark had a double-double on Saturday as she hauled in 18 rebounds – seven on the offensive glass. She also had three steals and two blocks in the 30 minutes she played. <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/03/IMG_4461-scaled-crop-1526x1002-1646517349.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-396764" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/03/IMG_4461-scaled-crop-1526x1002-1646517349-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="222148" first="Madeline" last="Duwe"]</strong> can also add a state championship to her diploma, cap and gown. The senior guard finished with 11 points, eight assists, three rebounds and two steals in the 30 minutes she played. Duwe also swished home five of her 11 tries from the field. <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/03/IMG_4418-scaled-crop-2026x1330-1646517450.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-396766" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/03/IMG_4418-scaled-crop-2026x1330-1646517450-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a> The Volunteers have been led all season by one of South Carolina’s premier freshmen in <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="175322" first="Tamia" last="Watkins"]</strong>. The bright state championship lights were not too bright for her as she managed a 15-point, eight-rebound effort. The Andrew Jackson big made six of her 14 shots from the field and even added a 3-pointer to her offensive output in the first half. <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/03/IMG_4542-scaled-crop-1164x765-1646517538.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-396768" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/03/IMG_4542-scaled-crop-1164x765-1646517538-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a> A late flurry from <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="383418" first="Ni’yonna" last="Asbelle"]</strong> gave her a 10-point performance. Eight of her 10 points came via the second half. Asbelle also collected four rebounds and a steal in addition to making four of her nine attempts from the field. <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/03/IMG_4486-scaled-crop-1393x915-1646517722.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-396770" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/03/IMG_4486-scaled-crop-1393x915-1646517722-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="395216" first="Emiley" last="McCall"]</strong> contributed nine points, four assists and four steals to the Volunteers effort. Her four points she had at the half had her as the second-leading Andrew Jackson player behind Watkins after two stanzas. <strong><em>Closing the Book</em></strong> <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/03/IMG_4569-scaled-crop-1623x1066-1646517889.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-396773" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/03/IMG_4569-scaled-crop-1623x1066-1646517889-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a> The postscript to the Cavaliers’ championship-winning season will mention how Christ Church finished with a record of 18-4. The team also ran the table by going 10 out of 10 against opponents from Region 1-AA. Coach Derek Vick’s first season at the helm for the Volunteers will end with a 23-4 showing in addition to going undefeated – 10-0 – in its Region 4-AA. The 23 wins are the most for an Andrew Jackson team since Dennis Farmer’s Volunteers also won 23 in 2013-14. <strong><em>So Long, Seniors</em></strong> Joining King and Duwe as graduates from this year’s Christ Church squad are Laken Jorgensen and [player_tooltip player_id="219371" first="Mary" last="Wilson Reyner"]. Annsley Vick, Ziya Carter, Carolina Hammond and Harleigh Payne are the four seniors that shall depart from Andrew Jackson at semester’s close.