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4SHOT Sports 2008-09 GHSA State Championships 2009 GHSA Class 3A Championship Game Carrollton “Lady Trojans” vs. Lakeview-Ft. Oglethorpe “Lady Warriors” Carrollton wins 3A Crown Macon, GA – The Lady Trojans from Carrollton H.S. returned to the Macon Centreplex with one thing on their minds and that was to take care of some unfinished business from last year and they did. Carrollton overcame an early deficit to knockoff Lakeview-Ft. Oglethorpe to capture the 2009 Class 3A State Championship, which they lost last year to Kendrick. Lakeview-Ft. Oglethorpe got off to an early 11-4 lead as Ashley McKenzie and Jasmain Carey both nailed three-pointers. Carrollton would counter with a three by Janyce Ealey to cut the lead to 12-9 at the end of the first quarter. The Lady Warriors star Kayla Weaver, who is a pretty good outside shooter struggled badly from the outside but her lay-up at the start of the second quarter put her team up by five. Karisma Boykin, a 4SHOT Hoops All-State performer last season, took over midway through the quarter; her basket cut the lead to 14-12. A few moments later Raven Trammell would score her only basket of the game to tie the score at 14-14. With 3:53 left in the half Boykin knocked down a three-pointer from the corner to give the Lady Trojans their first lead of the game, 17-16. Without the real presence of and inside player Carrolton had a tough time early dealing with Jasmain Carey and Michelle Morgan when they got position in the paint. Morgan made up for blowing an easy lay-up by scoring Lakeview-Ft Oglethorpe’s next six points as they surged back in front, leading 24-23 at the half. Cambre Winters, who played a good game for Carrollton scored to put the Lady Trojans’ back in front as the third quarter got underway. Alyssa Jones and Kelsi Billings really stepped up their games in the second half for Carrollton; Jones with her ball handling and Billings with her rebounding as the Lady Trojans began to take control of the game. A basket by Billings gave Carrollton their largest lead of the game, 34-24 as the third quarter came to an end. I know the Lakeview-Ft. Oglethorpe fans were wondering to themselves, of all the nights that Weaver had to have an off night shooting, why did it have to be this night as she continued to struggle. With the momentum clearly on their side Carrollton jumped into a full-court press at the start of the forth quarter and Head Coach Shon Thomaston got the results that he was looking for as the Lady Warriors started turning the ball over. Jones would hit a long jumper and when Ealey drained a three-pointer the Carrollton fans exploded, because they started to feel like the end of the journey was near. Carrollton led 41-27 with 5:35 to play. When Boykin found Billings with a sweet assist for a basket; it was all over but the shouting even though it was just under 4:00 minutes left to play. With time winding down and the game for all practical purposes over, both coaches emptied their benches giving way to their reserves. When the game clock expired a wild Carrollton celebration took place on the court and in the stands as the Lady Trojans took care of that unfinished business by winning the 2009 Class 3A State Championship that had eluded them a year earlier. The Final Score: Carrollton 51 - Lakeview-Ft. Oglethorpe 31 Scoring Recap Carrollton: Kelsi Billings scored 14 points to lead all scorers; Karisma Boykin added 13, Cambre Winters 7, Janyce Ealey and Alyssa Jones chipped in with 5 © Copyright 2006 by 4SHOT Sports |