Posted: Mar 07, 2016
Bolivia, NC - After both regular season contests were decided by single digits, the third matchup between No. 1 Cape Fear Community College and No. 2 Louisburg College did not disappoint as the Sea Devils used a big basket in the final seconds of regulation to force overtime as the top-seed in conference grabbed a 70-68 victory on Saturday afternoon.
In just its fourth year of existence, the Cape Fear women's basketball program clinched its first ever Region 10 Championship and berth to the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division II Tournament. The Sea Devils extended its win streak to 25 straight games, improving to 25-1 overall under first-year Coach Chris Harris.
"I'm really happy for our kids," said Harris. "I told them if they stayed together we would find a way to win. It's a great opportunity for them to go to the national tournament. They deserve it."
Trailing by a bucket with 7.2 seconds left in regulation, Chrystall Jerome scored on an easy lay-in just before the buzzer to send the conference title game into an extra period tied 62-all. Cape Fear outscored Louisburg 8-6 during the decisive frame to secure the victory as the Sea Devils trailed for most of the day before they drew even with 2.8 seconds left.
Four different players finished in double figures as Monica Alexander and De'najah Porter shared team high honors with 13 points apiece.
The Hurricanes carried a 61-57 advantage with 3:35 to play when Cape Fear pulled to within one in the final minutes of the fourth quarter. A free throw by Louisburg College made it a two-point contest as the Sea Devils advanced the ball to half court before calling a timeout to set up the game-tying basket by Jerome.
"We started to draw up a play at the end of regulation and I decided to just give it to Chrystall instead," Harris added. "She got to the basket and made the play like she has done all year for us. Dee hit key free throws when we needed them."
The freshman guard from South Central High School in Greenville scored 10 of 12 points in the fourth quarter and overtime, while Jasmine Brown chipped in with 10.
Turnovers plagued both teams early in the ball game as Louisburg held an 18-16 edge after the first quarter. They took a two-possession lead into the break and carried a 50-47 edge headed into the fourth as Cape Fear showed an incredible amount of perseverance over the final 10 minutes of regulation to send it into overtime.
Ranked No. 9 in the nation this week, Cape Fear now awaits their seed for the upcoming NJCAA DII Tournament in Overland Park, Kansas on March 15-19.
Courtesy of Joe Catenacci