Lexington girls defeat James Island to earn first state semifinals trip since 1979
Lexington senior guard Olivia Thompson knew coming out of the locker room during halftime of the Wildcats Class 5A third round playoff game against James Island on Monday night that she only had one half to play on her home court regardless of the outcome.
The school’s all-time leader in points scored, with 1,919, made sure there was at least another game to play. Thompson poured in 19 of her 24 points in the final half to give Lexington a 67-50 victory over the Trojans to advance to the state semifinals for the first time in 40 years.
“It’s a great feeling doing it with this group of seniors and this team, it’s an amazing feeling. I wouldn’t want to do it with anyone else,” Thompson said. “We’ve struggled the past years to just get past the second round. Now that we’ve done this, it’s amazing and means everything.”
Lexington advances to Saturday’s Lower State Championship at 5 p.m. at the Florence Civic Center against Goose Creek. The Gators, who defeated Fort Dorchester 59-36, eliminated Lexington in the second round last season 60-35. The last time the Wildcats reached this stage of the playoffs, they won it all in 1979.
“I wasn’t ready to be done with them,” Lexington coach Molly Goodrich said. “I always get a little depressed when basketball is over, so today when I woke up, today was not going to be the day I was done with this group. I’m excited for another week of practice.”
The seven seniors on the Lexington (24-4) roster didn’t want this to be the end of the line either. When Thompson struggled in the early going, fellow senior Brooke Foulks scored 15 of her 19 points in the opening two quarters to help give them a 33-24 lead at the break.
James Island (12-12) scored the game’s first four points before Foulks scored seven points during a 14-2 Wildcats run. Lexington never trailed from that point.
Thompson, who will play at South Carolina next year, hit a 3-pointer on the first possession of the third quarter and seemed to ignite her offensively. Before the quarter was over, she scored 14 points and Lexington led 51-38 entering the final eight minutes.
Hannah Kumiyama, another of the Wildcat seniors, then scored seven of her 13 points in the final quarter as the lead never was closer than 12 points.
“Olivia struggled the first half and started to get down on herself,” Goodrich said. “I tell the girls that if someone is down, somebody has to pick each other up. Today, it was Brooke. She did great, Hannah stepped up, and Olivia knew she couldn’t force her game and just let it come to her.”
Thompson said the 3-pointer to start the second half changed things for her.
“It changed the momentum in my game. I was just more confident as a whole. I was determined to get the win and move forward,” she said. “We have great chemistry on this team. Everyone has a role and something they bring to the table. It’s just awesome.”
Goodrich, who has been at Lexington for four years, started when this group came in as freshmen. She gets at least one more game with them.
“We’ve been working for four years with them,” she said. “They’re very talented, and when they put their heads together and their minds to it, they’re a very, very good team. We showed tonight that we can play with just about anybody.”
JI: Emily Runey 17, Augusta Dixon 13, Lucas 8, Holesberg 6, Edwards 3, Matthews 2, Washington 1. L: Olivia Thompson 24, Brooke Foulks 19, Hannah Kumiyama 13, Tarlton 5, Nichols 4, Monroe 2.