Robbinsville vs. Wilson Prep: 1A Championship

With the 2025-26 academic and athletic year across North Carolina being the first that the North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA) under the new realignment, this meant major changes for the landscape of high school sports across the state.    The most obvious change would be that the number of champions crowned would double. In high school girls basketball, Cherokee had won back-to-back 1A championships but was reclassified into 2A.    This meant a new 1A champion would be crowned. Would it be Robbinsville following its earlier playoff victories over Bethany Community, Thomas Jefferson Classical, Hiwassee Dam and Andrews? Would it be Wilson Prep after its regional wins over Rocky Mount Prep, Washington County, Vance Charter and Falls Lake Academy?    The answer was the latter as the Tigers prevailed over the Black Knights at Wake Forest's Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum by a final score of 58-44.    We at Prep Girls Hoops were on site for the big 1A state clash that took place on Wednesday. Here is a look at a few standout performers from Black Knights vs. Tigers.     One can expect that whenever this standout sophomore takes the court that she will live up to her last name. Thanks to the 21 points that were placed on the scoreboard by Best, Wilson Prep prevailed in this season's 1A championship contest over Robbinsville. She was also two rebounds shy of a double-double as she hauled in eight off the glass. Out of the eight she hauled in, five were of the offensive variety. Best also collected six steals as she played nearly all 32 minutes. She is one of seven from Wilson Prep's class of 2028 on this season's Tigers team. Best also earned East Most Outstanding Player honors.     Spearheading Wilson Prep's efforts in the frontcourt was another one of its seven 2028s – and one of its four team co-captains. Kay Yow Most Valuable Player honors were bestowed upon Brimage following the double-double of 11 points and 16 rebounds she had. Brimage logged over 26 minutes of court time on Wednesday afternoon. Her stellar performance also included a game-high five blocks. Brimage particularly made her presence known in the second half when she recorded nine of her 11 points, 11 of her rebounds and all of her blocked shots. A pair of steals were also part of Brimage's day on the Demon Deacons' home court.     Wilson Prep was the first girls assembling to earn its way into the win column primarily because of the stellar work of its starting five. Murphy was part of that opening quintet as she would log all 32 minutes while adding 10 points to the Tigers' cause. Murphy made her presence known as a defensive standout as well by virtue of the four steals she collected. Seven of her 10 points were recorded in the first half of play – in addition to three of that quartet of steals. The Tigers present a relatively young team – and Murphy is one of the four freshmen that comprise this season's Wilson Prep roster.     The Tigers also benefitted from solid minutes that were delivered courtesy of Brown. Another of the many 2028s on Wilson Prep's roster, One can place her in a team's lineup in the backcourt as a shooting guard or in the frontcourt at the three. The Tigers' cause was bolstered by the eight points she placed on the scoreboard. Brown also grabbed five rebounds and blocked a shot. Three of her five boards were of the offensive variety. She played nearly 29 minutes. Brown keeps a very busy athletic schedule as she also excels in softball and volleyball at the varsity level at Wilson Prep.     Wehr and her Robbinsville assembling may not have achieved the result it was looking for at the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum. She can still be proud that she came away with West Regional Most Outstanding Player honors. Wehr concluded Wednesday afternoon's matchup with a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds in addition to a steal. As a senior, Wehr wore a Black Knights uniform one final time. Out of the 11 points she scored, eight occurred in the first half of play. Six of her 10 rebounds occurred in the second half. Wehr would log over 30 minutes of court time.     Three players for the Black Knights finished in double digits for points. One of those was Chekelelee who played all 32 minutes and scored 10 points. Double-doubles for guards such as Chekelelee typically happen via points and assists but she was three rebounds shy of achieving the feat as she aided her team's cause with seven rebounds plus four assists. Six of her 10 rebounds occurred in the second half of play – as did all three of her assists. Chekelelee is one of four 2029s on this season's Robbinsville squad. Basketball is not the only sport that Chekelelee plays as she also competes in volleyball. The Black Knights made four 3-pointers for the game – three of them were Chekelelee's.     The third of the double-digit point-getters for the Black Knights would be Wolfe as she also contributed 10 points to Robbinsville's efforts. Seven of those 10 points for Wolfe would occur in the second half as she added valuable backcourt scoring depth off the bench for the Black Knights. Two of her three rebounds were of the offensive variety. Wolfe is another of the four freshmen on the 2025-26 version of Robbinsville. Despite playing the second-least minutes of the seven players available for the Black Knights, she shot – and made – the most free throws, connecting on four of her six tries from the charity stripe.     Another of Robbinsville's frontcourt standouts would be Phillips – who would add seven points to the Black Knights' cause. Phillips also helped the Black Knights' rebounding efforts as she would contribute seven of the 42 Robbinsville rebounds. Four of those seven rebounds would be on the offensive glass and a steal was also part of Phillips' outing. She logged nearly 28 minutes of court time for the Black Knights, providing solid frontcourt minutes. Phillips is the lone sophomore on this season's Robbinsville team and can be placed in a team's lineup from either the three or in the backcourt as a shooting guard.

With the 2025-26 academic and athletic year across North Carolina being the first that the North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA) under the new realignment, this meant major changes for the landscape of high school sports across the state.