Warriors historic season ends in semifinals
Published 11:35 pm Tuesday, February 28, 2023
Hamilton Christian’s historic run to the state tournament ended with a 63-36 loss to Northwood-Lena in a Select Division IV semifinal.
The Warriors (24-6) appeared in a LHSAA state tournament for the first time.
Northwood-Lena (22-6), the Class 1A champion last season, advanced to its third straight state championship game. They will play Southern Lab, which beat Central Catholic 65-28 in the other semifinal.
Nakiyah Allen led the Gators with 25 points, 14 rebounds and three blocked shots.
“She was tough, we tried to double-team her but they made us pay on the weak side whenever we got lost,” Hamilton head coach Edwin Colbert said.
“We fought. We fought all year to get here and we deserved to be here. We came a long way from having an 0-22 season a couple years ago.”
Riley Fontenot had 14 points and 12 rebounds for Hamilton. Journi Singleton had 13 points and eight rebounds.
The Gators outscored Hamilton 18-7 in the first quarter. Hamilton found their footing in the second quarter behind the play of guard McKenzie Deville, who scored five of the team’s 12 points in the quarter.
Northwood dominated the third quarter, outscoring Hamilton 19-8 to extend its lead to 22 points.