Christian Thompson (2) drives in for the layup.
In a game that was never in doubt, the Lady Griffins of Fairfield Central went wire to wire in a first-round romp of the Chesterfield High School Lady Rams Tuesday night, blasting the Ewes 48-18 at Fairfield Central.
The Lady Griffins snatched the opening tip and raced out to a 7-0 lead in the early seconds of the game. A tenacious Griffin defense limited Chesterfield to just seven shots from the floor in the first quarter and 13 total in the first half. The Fairfield defense had 13 takeaways in the first half, while forcing Chesterfield into 13 turnovers.
Totally off balance and outmatched, the Ewes were on their heels and trailing 18-0 by the end of the first period. The Lady Griffins, meanwhile, converted steals and turnovers into points underneath, running up a 23-0 lead before Chesterfield finally found the basket with a 3-pointer by Destiny Watts with 4:29 left in the first half.
With Fairfield up 27-7 to start the third period, the Lady Rams opened up from the floor, with Sierra Hartwick taking on much of the shooting load. Still, Chesterfield only found glass; their only two points of the third coming from the foul line. Jada Martin, on the other hand, lit up the scoreboard for 11 second half points, running her total to 20 on the night. Martin also led the Griffins with eight steals, followed by Chelsea Seibles, who stripped the Ewes six times and dropped in 10 points. By the end of the third, the Lady Griffins had an embarrassing 40-9 lead and head coach Cedrick Simpson emptied his bench.
“This was a great experience for my young girls,” Simpson said, “because we’re going to need them. I’m only playing one senior (Seibles), so this will be good for them down the road.”
The Fairfield defense kept the hammer down in the final quarter, trapping the Lady Rams along the sidelines and in the corner with first-quarter intensity.
In such a lopsided match, Simpson acknowledged the importance of keeping his girls focused from tip to buzzer. How?
“I just keep on fussing,” Simpson said.
The Lady Griffins will travel to Cheraw tonight (Feb. 15) for a second round matchup with the Lady Braves. Tip is at 7 p.m.
FC—Christian Thompson: 2, Chyna Moore: 5, Chelsea Seibles: 10, Jada Martin: 20, Tiea Quanna Pearson: 2, Tanise Davis: 9.
CH—Destiny Watts: 3, Krystan White: 3, Yasmeen Joines: 6, Karyn Brown: 6.
