For three quarters Friday night, it appeared No. 1 seed Geraldine was in danger of being upset by No. 2 seed Sand Rock in the girls Class 2A Area 13 Tournament championship game at Bulldog Gym.

But the No. 2 ranked Lady Bulldogs opened the fourth quarter with a 7-0 run to seize command and gain a 56-47 victory, their 14th in a row.

Nicole Strickland led Geraldine with 18 points, followed by Tournament MVP Megan Harris with 14 points and Ashley Frasier with 10.



Geraldine finished 17 of 21 from the free throw line.

Sand Rock banked their hopes for an upset on the perimeter shooting of Jennifer Givens, who drained school record eight 3-point baskets on the way to 29 points.

Givens shot 50% (8-for-16) from the three-point line.

Angelique Kordich added nine points and six rebounds for the Lady ‘Cats

A pair of treys by Frasier helped the Lady Bulldogs grab a 15-11 lead after a quarter, but Givens rallied Sand Rock in the second quarter by hitting a couple of three-pointers and a running jump shot to propel the Lady Wildcats to a 25-21 lead at intermission.

Six points by Strickland and four each by Jessica Roden and Harris enabled Geraldine to pull within 38-37 at third-quarter break.

Angel Rogers’ free throw tied it 38-all with 7:32 remaining, and Strickland’s steal and lay-up put GHS ahead to stay with 7:20 left.

Frasier’s one-and-one gave the Lady Bulldogs a 44-38 lead with 6:03 on the clock.

The lead reached 50-41 with 1:09 left as Geraldine’s defense limited Sand Rock to one field goal in the first 7:28 of the final period.

Two three-pointers by Givens cut it to 52-47 with 17.1 seconds remaining, but Strickland and Harris each converted a pair of free throws to seal the victory.

Joining Harris and Roden on the All-Tourna-ment squad were Sand Rock’s Givens and Taylor Burt, Sylvania’s Julie Andrews and Tiffany Hall and Fyffe’s Ashley Stan-ford.



Sand Rock visits No. 6 ranked Pisgah this Thursday for a subregional game