By LaMar Gafford

Special to the American Press

HAMMOND — In three of the previous four seasons, defending state champion Lake Arthur has gotten the best of Amite in the Class 2A girls basketball playoffs.

However, the Warriors were determined to not let it happen a fourth time.

Lake Arthur’s title defense came to an end Wednesday at Southeastern Louisiana’s University Center as No. 1 Amite crushed the fifth-seeded Tigers 74-44 in the semifinals.

“Lake Arthur and us, we’ve been at it for years,” Warriors coach Fekesha Pierre said. “The motivation was there to finally beat them, and we did just that.”

The Tigers were within reasonable striking distance at halftime when their trailed 33-21, but a 25-9 Amite (31-2) advantage in the third quarter all but ended their chances.

Lake Arthur (26-7) shot 22.7 percent in the second half as sophomore Vivian Sketoe was the lone player in double figures with 18 points.

Amite senior Jalencia “Jen” Pierre had a double-double of 20 points and 10 assists as she shot 9-for-12 from the floor. Sophomore Hai’ley Brumfield added 19 points and six rebounds on 8-for-18 shooting as its guards were too much for the Tigers.

In the second half, the Warriors shot 77.3 percent, including making 11 of their 14 shots in the second half.

“We’ve prepared to play this Lake Arthur team for several years now,” Fekesha Pierre said. “Hats off to Coach Vickie Sketoe and her group. They did an excellent job as well getting their girls prepared to play against us.”