FORT WHITE — Denied by a single bucket a year ago, the stage is set yet again for the Indians’ shot at a state Final Four appearance.
All it took was getting over a minor hiccup in their regional semifinal matchup.
No. 2 seed Fort White shook off a slow start early before pulling away throughout its 70-24 win in the Region 3-R semifinals against No. 3 seed Madison County. The Indians are now on another collision course with top-seeded Hilliard for the right to advance to the state semis.
“Just win and advance, that was our main goal,” FWHS coach Bregay Harris said. “We did what we needed to do: finish around the rim. We got it done.”
Fort White (17-9) was initially held scoreless through the first two and a half minutes before Erickah Roberson broke the ice from 3-point range off an assist from her sister, Javiona. The Indians were off and running from there, outscoring the Cowgirls 11-2 to end the quarter up 14-4 thanks to four points apiece from the Roberson sisters as well as Zuri Hollie.
Fort White wasted little time getting going in the second. An Erickah Roberson steal on the first possession for Madison (12-8) gave way to a Javiona layup off an assist from guard Mariah Cox.
Javiona Roberson wasn’t done there. The Indians stacked their lead to 33-15 thanks to a Tanesha Sloan layup with 30 seconds to go in the first half, prompting a bit of banter between Roberson and Madison guard Janiyah Livingston. Roberson followed through on her talk, stealing the ball away on the Cowgirls’ next possession before pulling up and sinking a jumper from the free throw line as time expired.
“Everyone’s gonna give us their best shot, so we just had to show out and show that we were the better team,” Roberson said. “I’ve got to set the tone for the team to get us energy. We’ve got to have that energy on the floor.”
After being held scoreless in the first quarter, Fort White’s biggest weapon turned on the jets. She scored five points in the second before nailing a 3-pointer to start off the third quarter.
Wilson wound up with a double-double, leading the Indians in points with 15 while grabbing 10 boards and a pair of blocks. Cox and Javiona Roberson also finished in double figures with 14 and 10 apiece while Erickah Roberson and Hollie each had nine. Meanwhile, guard Te’Kiah Gilley led the Cowgirls with 11 points with forward Shy’maine Jones putting up six in the loss.
“Sometimes, when one’s not on, we’ve got to find it somewhere else,” Harris said of her team’s effort. “We found multiple kids that were on fire tonight. A team effort tonight.”
Cox hit a couple of last-minute layups with time winding down in the third quarter, her second granting Fort White a running clock for the fourth while taking a 59-23 lead. From there, the biggest pop of the night from the crowd came when reserve forward Kayla Anderson hit the second of the Indians’ three 3-pointers of the quarter that gave them a 67-24 lead. Shaylee Lindsey hit the other pair around Anderson’s, prompting Fort White’s starters’ sideline celebrations.
However, Harris knows the challenge ahead in next week’s regional championship. The Flashes (23-5) handily took care of Dixie County 65-16 in their regional semifinal matchup. Fort White now travels to Hilliard for the second time in two years next Friday for a 7 p.m. tipoff
“(I’m looking forward to) just a good, competitive game,” Harris said. “It left a bitter taste in our mouth last year.
“We’re more motivated than we’ve ever been.”