AUGUSTA — Richmond High fans are so used to seeing their girls’ teams in regional finals, it’s tough to imagine it’s been 10 years since the Bobcats reached a basketball championship game.
They did that Thursday by knocking off fourth-seeded Greenville 34-22 in the Western Class D semifinals. The top-seeded Bobcats (19-1) will face No. 3 Valley for the regional title Saturday afternoon at the Augusta Civic Center.
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“We haven’t been there in a really long time and it’s about time we go there,” sophomore Jamie Plummer said.
Plummer, Richmond’s 5-foot-11 center, finished with a 14 points and was the focal point of Greenville’s zone defense.
“They did a great job of clogging the middle, so we just worked the ball around,” Plummer said. “We tried to eventually get them to pull out, but they really didn’t. We were just patient and patient, and a couple of times we were able to get them off their feet and get the ball inside.”
The Bobcats led from start to finish after opening the game with three consecutive 3-pointers, two from Brooke Lancaster and one from Danica Hurley.
“That was huge, definitely,” said Hurley, who finished with 10 points. “That got our momentum going.”
Greenville (13-6) chipped away and cut the lead to 12-11 early in the second quarter, but the Lakers struggled from the field, shooting just 8 of 35. Gretel Breton scored nine points before fouling out, and Miranda Drinkwater added eight. The Bobcats’ defense did a nice job on sophomore Michaella Gilbert, who scored one point.
“(She’s) the one who’s given us the most trouble throughout the season,” Richmond Coach Molly Bishop said. “She’s a strong kid.”
The Bobcats led 19-14 at the half despite even though Plummer picked up her third foul in the second quarter and had to sit out. Plummer scored all of Richmond’s points in the third quarter as they held the ball for extended periods and outscored the Lakers 5-2.
Greenville closed to within 27-22 on a baseline jumper by Breton, but Hurley made a basket in the lane after taking a pass from Lancaster.
“I kind of started to regret (the shot) as I was going up, but it went in,” Hurley said. “So it wasn’t too big of a deal.”
The Bobcats got a nice team rebounding effort, led by Alyssa Pearson with seven, Plummer with five, and Payton Johnson and Hurley with four apiece.
Gary Hawkins — 621-5638
ghawkins@centralmaine.com
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