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BASKETBALL
+ Crest girls win district
For one half of Thursday’s 7A-7 district championship game, the Plant City defense was in control.
In the second half, Strawberry Crest proved that defense doesn’t always win championships.
A third-quarter rally, capped off with an even stronger fourth-quarter push, allowed the Lady Chargers to edge out the Lady Raiders, 64-59, for the title.
Plant City held a 28-21 lead at halftime, although the game wasn’t as close as the score suggested. The Lady Raider defense smothered Crest at nearly every opportunity, fueled by Shayna Lawrence’s presence inside.
In the third quarter, Lawrence was benched after getting a technical foul. That’s when Crest’s offense woke up, scoring 12 points in three-and-one-half minutes and eventually ending the quarter down by two points, trailing 43-41. Lawrence re-entered the game halfway through the final quarter, and the two teams traded leads throughout the final two minutes of play.
But, with 45 seconds on the clock, Crest pulled ahead for good with a layup. Terra Brooks got the ball back, scored a layup and drew a foul, but couldn’t convert at the line. Crest stole the ball with 11.2 seconds left, when Plant City sent Maiya Trigg to the foul line. That proved to be the dagger, as the senior guard drained both free throw attempts.
Championship results from the boys district tournament at East Bay this week were not available at press time.
SOCCER
+ Venice tops PCHS girls in regionals
The Lady Raiders’ latest run through regionals came to a close Friday, Jan. 30, as Venice rolled to a 2-0 win at home.
The loss came after a series of nail-biting, 1-0 home wins against Osceola and East Bay Jan. 22 and 27, respectively. Plant City was able to contain this Lady Indians team, which had just beaten Lakewood Ranch, 3-2 in extra time (won, 7-6, on penalty kicks), but the hosts proved to be one step ahead of the Lady Raiders that night.
A win at Venice would have sent this Plant City team to the state tournament for the first time in program history. The Lady Indians will face Pembroke Pines Charter at 12:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 6, for a chance to make the 4A state championship game.
WRESTLING
+ PCHS celebrates seniors
Plant City High School had only one home meet all season, and the team’s seniors got to end their home careers with a 42-22 win over the Armwood Hawks.
Before last Wednesday’s action got started, head coach Nick Ferrario honored seniors Kaleb Daugherty, Roberto Jaramillo, Jesse Jaramillo, Chris Ratcliff and Brett Estrada, as well as their family members in attendance.