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DeGraffenreid leads SM women to regional title
Cetera DeGraffenreid set a Western Regional record with 41 points Saturday leading Smoky Mountain to a 66-52 victory over East Davidson and the regional title at the Joel Coliseum Annex in Winston-Salem.
The Lady Mustangs (29-2) set a school record for wins in a season. They will play Graham (31-1) for the state 2-A basketball championship at noon Saturday at the Smith Center in Chapel Hill. (See story on page 1A.)
Smoky Mountain’s Cetera DeGraffenreid shoots for two of her regional record 41 points Saturday against East Davidson in the finals of the Western Regionals at Winston-Salem. DeGraffenreid surpassed 3,000 career points in the 66-52 victory that put the Lady Mustangs into this coming Saturday’s state 2-A championship game in Chapel Hill. – Herald photo by Carey Phillips
DeGraffenreid was named the regionals’ most valuable player. She was joined on the all-tournament squad by teammates Ashley Robinson and Cayla Cucumber.
DeGraffenreid broke the record of 38 scored by Mitchell’s Leslie Burleson in 1997 for the most points by a female player in any classification since the regional format was adopted in 1981.
She also became just the sixth female player in N.C. High School Athletic Association history to surpass 3,000 career points.
Smoky Mountain’s representatives on the All-Western Regional basketball team were, from left: Cayla Cucumber, Ashley Robinson and Cetera DeGraffenreid, the Regional most valuable player. – Herald photo by Carey Phillips
“I had no idea,” the All-American point guard said of her latest accomplishments. “It’s a great honor, but we still have a goal of a state championship.”
The game was a rematch of a regional semifinal contest a year ago when Tasha Junaluska’s three-pointer at the buzzer gave SM a 52-49 win. No last-second heroics were needed this time as the Lady Mustangs led by as many as 26 points.
“I was real pleased with how our kids came out and played,” Coach Cindi Simmons said.
DeGraffenreid hit 13 of 22 field goals, including two three-pointers, and 13 of 16 foul shots. She was a sizzling nine of 11 from the floor in the second half and disrupted the Lady Eagle offense with eight steals. DeGraffenreid also led the team with eight rebounds.
She deflected the credit to her teammates for allowing her to get open looks at the basket.
Amy Haggard and Laury Brown both had six rebounds.
“We wanted to come out and play a game like we had never played all year,” Haggard said. “Everybody played an amazing game.”
One of the keys was a defense that limited East to 15 percent field goal shooting in the first half and 26.7 percent for the game.
As an example, look no further than Lady Eagle center Anna Freeman. She scored 27 points to go with 16 rebounds and nine blocked shots in a semifinal win over Newton-Conover.
Saturday she was limited to six points, all from the foul line. She had just five rebounds and no blocks.
“Anna is a tremendous player,” Simmons said. “She’s very versatile. We were going to try to put different people on her.”
The coach credited Robinson, Brown and Kelli Woodard with holding Freeman in check.
Stacy Hicks was East’s leading scorer with seven.
DeGraffenreid scored all 11 of her team’s points in the first period. She hit a three-pointer from the baseline for a 6-2 edge with 4:43 on the clock then converted a three-point play making it 11-4 at the 1:33 mark.
The margin was 11-7 at the quarter break.
The lead reached double digits at 20-10 after two DeGraffenreid free throws with 4:40 to go in the half.
Two Woodard foul shots put SM up 28-14 at the 1:10 mark, and it was 28-16 at intermission.
Eight straight points, including four each by DeGraffenreid and Haggard, built the lead to 36-19 with 4:44 to play in the third stanza, which ended with the Lady Mustangs leading 45-32.
SM opened the fourth quarter on an 11-1 spurt, including five by DeGraffenreid and four by Haggard, for a 56-33 lead at the 5:03 mark.
The game’s biggest margin was 62-36 after DeGraffenreid’s fast break layup with 3:58 to play.
Completing the SM scoring were Robinson with eight, Woodard with six, Haggard and Brown both with four, and Junaluska with three.
Simmons wasn’t surprised her team came out focused after defeating Salisbury in Friday’s semifinals.
“There wasn’t a lot of celebrating after the Salisbury game,” she said. “I knew they weren’t satisfied.”
SM gains revenge
The Lady Mustangs avenged last season’s only loss by topping Salisbury 73-65 in Friday’s semifinals.
The Lady Hornets eliminated SM 46-24 in the regional finals a year ago.
“We really wanted to play Salisbury again,” Simmons said.
“We knew we were going to have to change what happened last year,” said DeGraffenreid, who scored 31 points, pulled down nine rebounds and came up with five steals. “We wanted to play Salisbury again and prove to them we had been working all year and last year was in the past.”
“We knew coming in this was going to be a totally different game, and we needed to come out and play defense, defense, defense,” Haggard said.
“We felt real good about our defensive play,” Simmons said.
As for the difference between this year and last year she said, “We attacked the basket better. We definitely rebounded better than we did a year ago. We also got the ball up the floor quicker.”
Robinson scored 14 points and claimed nine boards. Cucumber came off the bench to score 12.
Kwameshia Hicks paced Salisbury with 24 points. De’Rya Wylie added 13, and Shi-Heria Shipp had 11.
The Lady Hornets shot 52.2 percent from the floor in the first half but cooled off after intermission and finished at 41.1 percent.
The Lady Mustangs made 49.1 percent of their field goal tries.
The first period produced four lead changes and two ties. The biggest margin was Salisbury’s 16-12 edge on a Shanae Knox follow shot at the 1:51 mark. The Lady Hornets led 18-16 at the quarter break.
Junaluska hit a pair of three-pointers from the corner early in the second stanza for a 22-18 advantage with 6:51 on the clock.
DeGraffenreid had the last four points in a 10-2 spurt for a 26-20 lead at the 5:32 mark.
The margin reached 34-24 on DeGraffenreid’s fast break layup with 3:55 on the clock.
Salisbury cut the gap to 39-33 at intermission.
The Lady Hornets scored the second half’s first six points, including four by Wylie, for a 29-29 tie with 6:19 to play in the third stanza.
DeGraffenreid responded with a three-pointer giving her team the lead for good, 42-39, with 6:05 on the clock. Robinson made two free throws, and DeGraffenreid went coast-to-coast for a 46-39 advantage at the 4:58 mark.
SM closed the quarter on a 12-2 spurt for a 58-44 lead. The run included a trey and a three-point play by DeGraffenreid and two baskets by Cucumber.
The margin reached 65-50 on Cucumber’s follow shot with 3:34 on the clock.
Things got a little interesting when DeGraffenreid fouled out with 1:53 to play, and Hicks hit a three-pointer five seconds later trimming the gap to 67-59.
Haggard made four free throws, and Brown had a breakaway layup keeping the Lady Mustangs in control.
The experience the team gained when DeGraffenreid missed several games with an elbow injury earlier this season came in handy after she fouled out.
“I’m sure they thought they had us shook, but we played the heart of our conference season when she was hurt,” Haggard said. “It was the hardest part of the game, but we stepped up. It’s no fun playing with Cetera on the bench.”
Giving some good-natured ribbing to her close friend, Haggard added with a grin, “It was fun winning with her sitting out.”
DeGraffenreid hit 11 field goals, including two three-pointers, and seven of eight foul shots. Robinson made five field goals and four of four free throws. Cucumber scored all her points from the floor.
Haggard and Junaluska both finished with six points while Woodard and Brown had two apiece.
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