Harris delivers late for Hampton

Crabbers finish with 13-2 flurry

HAMPTON — For 29 minutes, Hampton resembled its football counterparts more than an elite girls basketball team that was undefeated in Class 4 play.

Diving after loose balls and rebounds, the Region A champions had been surprised by the scrappiness of Hanover, who matched the intensity of the Crabbers. After a 3-pointer by Jolena Goldkuhle and putback by Kaycee Doughty, the Hawks had clawed back from a 12-point deficit to close the lead to six with four minutes left in regulation.

And then Hampton’s Kennedy Harris took over.

In the game’s final three minutes, the All-American dominated, scoring seven points with three steals and a remarkable backdoor assist to Jayla Stratton, which propelled the Crabbers to a 45-28 win in Friday’s state quarterfinal in Bethel’s gym.

“We had not seen a team that ran an offense like them. They ran their offense very, very well,” said Hampton coach Shanda Bailey, whose team finished on a 13-2 run. “We saw some things from them on film that we had never seen before.”

Bailey added, “We had to get used to the dribble-drive that they were running. Once we made some adjustments and got past that, we stopped them from going downhill and were able to pull away.”

Harris, who averages more than 31 points per game, finished with 20 to lead all scorers. In the game’s 30th minute, Harris had two steals, two free throws, a 3-pointer and an assist.

And when Hampton (23-3) needed her the most, Harris delivered. The rugged Hawks defense held the area’s leading scorer without a point in the game’s first five minutes. But with the score tied at 4, the senior guard delivered back-to-back 3-pointers from the right wing, giving the Crabbers their first meaningful lead at 10-4. Another jumper by Harris increased the margin to eight.

And with the half drawing to a close, it was Harris’ 3-pointer at the buzzer that gave Hampton a 20-11 edge.

The Hawks (19-9) entered the game on the heels of a loss to Matoaca in the Region B final, and Hanover missed numerous opportunities to take an early lead. Yet Hampton missed plenty of its own shots before the pair of treys from Harris, which allowed the visitors from Mechanicsville to stay within striking distance.

The Crabbers extended the lead to 13-4, but a 3-pointer from sophomore guard Izzy Murphy closed the lead to six and stopped Hampton’s momentum.

Hampton will face King’s Fork in a rematch of the Region A championship game. The Crabbers defeated King’s Fork 75-43 to win the region crown.