by Lisa Hinton-Valdrighi
Rappahannock County eliminated Lancaster from post season play last Friday after pulling away in the first quarter to cruise to a 45-34 win in a Conference #43 girls basketball quarterfinal.
After falling behind by 11 in the first half, Lancaster made a third-quarter run at the visiting Lady Panthers, opening the second half with a 5-0 run to cut the deficit to six before Rappahannock County’s Kayla Robey drilled back-to-back three pointers. The determined Lady Devils made a 7-0 run to get as close as four, 27-23, with three minutes to play in the third, before Olivia Atkins quieted the LHS bench with another three-pointer.
For the night, Robey hit four threes and Atkins two. Three of them came in the third to help Rappahannock County stay in front. Lancaster, with eight points from Jasmyn Tomlin, outscored the Lady Panthers, 13-10, in the third but RC opened the fourth with a 10-3 run to put the game out of reach.
Lancaster never got closer than 11 in the final eight minutes.
Carli Henderson led the Lady Devils with 13 points and Tomlin added 12.
Robey led three double-digit scorers for the Panthers. She scored 17, including 12 on three pointers, while Atkins finished with 14. Julia Estes added 12.
Rappahannock County will advance to the conference semifinals to play top ranked Colonial Beach. The winner of that game will advance to the championship game at 6 p.m. Saturday, February 18, at Lancaster.
