Lady Raiders play state final tomorrow: Marion County’s girls make their fourth consecutive appearance in 1A state championship

By Luke Brantley
Staff writer
BIRMINGHAM – For the fourth season in a row, the Marion County High School Lady Red Raiders will be playing in the final round of the 1A girls’ state basketball playoffs tomorrow night.
The Lady Raiders played the semi-final round on Monday, Feb. 26, against the Keith High School Lady Bears.
Marion County took the lead in the first quarter, going ahead 12-5, but the Lady Bears started to close the gap in the second quarter.
The score was tied 16-16 with only a few minutes until halftime, when Marion County’s Alecia Donaldson hit a 3-point shot that put the Lady Raiders back in control of the game.
The Lady Raiders began the third quarter with a 24-20 lead, and they began to kick things into gear as Lily Robinson hit a 3-pointer in the opening seconds of the half.
Marion County was able to keep the points coming in, and two back-to-back 3-point baskets from   Junkin set up the Lady Raiders with a 47-28 lead going into the fourth quarter.
The Lady Red Raiders kept up the rapid pace through the fourth quarter, scoring 18 more points while only allowing 9 against them.
In the end, Marion County’s girls secured their spot in the state final with a 65-37 victory over Keith.
Marion County will play the winner of the other semi-final game between Spring Garden and Elba in the state final tomorrow, Feb. 29, at 4 p.m. at BJCC Legacy Arena in Birmingham.
Jasmine Wilson scored the most points for the Lady Raiders, bringing in 16 points along with 11 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals.
Donaldson scored 14 points and grabbed 3 rebounds, 4 assists and 10 steals.
Junkin scored 11 points and ended up with 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 4 steals.
Jolie Kate Cox scored 10 points and had 11 total rebounds, 2 blocks and 1 steal.
Lily Robinson scored 8 points and had 2 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 steal.
Zella Williams scored 4 points and recorded 2 rebounds and 4 assists.
Addisyn Randolph scored 2 points and made 1 steal.
Krissa Corner snagged 2 rebounds and 1 steal.
The Raiders are headed into the final round with a record of 17-14 for the season.