No. 9 Charlotte Catholic girls claim 'Battle of Park Road' with big second half
The moment that Charlotte Catholic has been building for is quickly approaching.
A lengthy playoff run a year ago, and a rigorous regular season schedule have helped pave the way to what the No. 9 ranked Cougars hope is a trip to the state’s biggest stage in Winston-Salem a month from now.
In 24 hours time, the team aced one of its final simulations of playoff basketball.
Exiting the halftime locker room at South Mecklenburg on Wednesday evening, Charlotte Catholic found another gear. Gracynn Gough and Blanca Thomas scored 29 of the team’s 33 second half points to flip a 23-22 deficit at the break into a 55-39 non-conference win.
The first quarter of the two-mile trip down Park Road was filled with 11 combined fouls. 7 missed free throws by the Sabres opened the door for Charlotte Catholic to claim a 17-14 lead through one.
South Mecklenburg opened the second with a strong showing. Makailah Davis followed her 5 first quarter points with a corner three to push the home side in front for the first time.
Freshmen Kathleen Miller and KB Brown kept things going with 6 of their 12 first half points coming in the frame. Defensively, the Sabres managed to contain the Cougars and hold them to just one field goal.
The script flipped in the third quarter. Gough immediately opened the frame with consecutive three-point baskets, and Thomas added 7 points of her own to spark a 14-4 run.
Charlotte Catholic built its lead up to as many as 10 in the third quarter, and held South Mecklenburg to only 5 field goals in the final 16 minutes of play.
Gough followed a Thomas three from atop the key with two more from the corner. The Holy Cross commit connected on all four of her three-point attempts in the game.
Davis added a final three in the fourth quarter for South Mecklenburg to finish with a team-high 12. Thomas, who recently eclipsed 1,000 career rebounds, pulled down 16 for Charlotte Catholic. Olivia Fava dished out 5 assists in the victory as well.
The Cougars continue a three-game road trip on Friday night at Rocky River. They currently hold a record of 17-3 overall, and 8-0 in league play thanks to a season sweep of No. 13 Independence on Tuesday night.
South Mecklenburg will look to bounce back on Friday at Palisades. The Sabres are currently 11-9 overall, and 5-2 in the SoMeck.
Charlotte Catholic Scoring:
- Gough, 21
- Thomas, 21
- Kernodle, 8
- Fava, 3
- McKain, 2
South Mecklenburg Scoring:
- Davis, 12
- Brown, 9
- Miller, 6
- Hensley, 6
- Farah, 3
- Williams, 3
