Girls’ rewind: North Meck rolls in NCHSAA 4A playoffs, sets up Butler showdown Friday
North Mecklenburg’s girls were upset by Mallard Creek in their last game Friday, falling to the Mavericks in the Queen City conference tournament championship game.
Tuesday night, in the first round of the 4A playoffs, the Vikings got right back to work.
In a 71-32 win over Southeast Guilford, North Meck led 23-8 after the first quarter and 38-16 at halftime.
Sophomore post Lenise Joseph, The Observer’s pick for Queen City player of the year, had a game-high 24 points. The Vikings also got 14 from Morgan Knox, 11 from Charlotte Coyour and 10 from Shanon Hoover.
North Mecklenburg will play Southwestern 4A champ Butler on the road in Friday’s second round.
Quick links
NCHSAA scoreboard: Girls’ first round scores, Friday’s second round pairings
NCHSAA scoreboard: Boys’ first round scores, Friday’s second round pairings
Butler High’s Hannah Moss enjoying breakout year, as is her team
Tuesday’s #BIG5 top girls’ performers
Kiara Anderson, Mallard Creek: In a 64-21 win over Page, Anderson had 17 points, 10 rebounds and four steals.
Maggie Kernodle, Charlotte Catholic: In a 77-57 win over South Caldwell, Kernodle went for a game-high 31 points.
Rayana Minard, Lake Norman: In an 85-40 win over Cox Mill, Minard had 18 points, six steals, four rebounds and an assist.
Hannah Moss, Butler: The Observer’s pick for Southwestern 4A player of the year had 16 points, three rebounds and three assists in a 52-39 win over Myers Park.
Meredith Wike, Alexander Central: In a 63-56 win over Porter Ridge, Wike had 24 points, 10 rebounds, four assists and two steals.
Just noting
▪ Tuesday’s results set up a potentially outstanding girls’ second-round game Friday, with 10th-seeded North Mecklenburg (24-3) visiting seventh seed Butler (24-2). And the winner of that contest potentially could face powerhouse Lake Norman in Round 3.
▪ Queen’s Grant Charter completed a first-round sweep, as the Matthews 1A school’s girls’ team downed Draughn 78-57 and the boys beat Union Academy 69-41. The Stallions’ basketball programs have surged this season, as the girls are 18-4 and the boys 22-5.
▪ Lake Norman junior Kelsey Rhyne reached the 500-rebound mark for her career in the second-seeded Wildcats’ 85-40 romp over Cox Mill.
Tuesday’s girls’ box scores
ALEXANDER CENTRAL 63, PORTER RIDGE 56
Porter Ridge 5 20 16 15 — 56
Alexander Central 13 10 21 19 — 63
PORTER RIDGE 56 — Lamont 4, Ashanti Taylor 17, Kali Williams 22, Garcia 6, McKinley 2, Malcolm 5
ALEXANDER CENTRAL 63 — Head 3, Faith Burch 10, Meredith Wike 24, Adams 9, Addie Jack 10, Haas 3, Brashear 3, Hammer 1
BUTLER 52, MYERS PARK 39
Butler 13 15 11 13 — 52
Myers Park 10 7 15 7 — 39
BUTLER 52 — Hannah Moss 16, Brooklyn Saunders 12, Muhammad 3, Park 5, Hasson 6, Campbell 2, Ross 8
MYERS PARK 39 — Armani Barner 21, Hopkins 2, McDaniel 4, Thompson 6
Butler’s Hannah Moss finished with 16 points, three rebounds three assists, Brooklyn Saunders added 12 points, six assists and three rebounds
CHARLOTTE CATHOLIC 77, SOUTH CALDWELL 57
Charlotte Catholic 13 17 17 30 — 77
South Caldwell 12 4 21 20 — 57
CHARLOTTE CATHOLIC 77 — Kailey Richard 14. Maggie Kernodle 31, Hoefling 2, Megan Shea 19, Lupinski 2, Fey 7, Tucker 2, Dumler,Maino, Williams, Ferrell
SOUTH CALDWELL 57 — Wilks 9, Ava Anderson 25, Whitman 9, Smith 3, Kristin Barber 11, Weisner, Ke Setzer, Winebarger, Childers
Record: South Caldwell 18-9
DUDLEY 50, WEST CHARLOTTE 47
Dudley 18 9 16 7 — 50
West Charlotte 15 5 10 17 — 47
DUDLEY 50 — J. Taylor 4 , J.Pass 4 , Kimora Haith 18 , K. Jackson 1 , Janiah Terry 16 , T. Carter 2 , J. Jones 2.
WEST CHARLOTTE 47 — C. Generette 4 , Jonnae Bennett 10 , K. Grier 8 , Bri’Asia Rowe 17 , P.Reaves 8.
FREEDOM 69, ASHBROOK 62
Ashbrook 12 13 19 18 — 62
Freedom 17 17 20 15 — 69
ASHBROOK 62 — J. Sadler 21, D. Hardin 15, C. Morales 11, McDowell 8, Miller 7, Jackson, Mooring, Sumpter.
FREEDOM 69 — Peyton Caldwell 41, Gladden 8, Hagmann 7, Cooke 6, C, Caldwell 5, Bates 2, Johnson.
HIBRITEN 61, EAST LINCOLN 49
Hibriten 14 20 13 14 — 61
East Lincoln 15 10 15 9 — 49
HIBRITEN 61 — Aamori Patterson 22, Karlee Starnes 10, A. Healy 8, Z. Rector 7, E. Cook 6, P. Boggs 5, A. Suddreth 2
EAST LINCOLN 49 — Emma Montanari 17, Lane Pethel 17, T. Thomas 9, M. Arndt 5, S. Dann 1
Noteable: East Lincoln’s Lane Pethel recorded her 13th double-double of the season (17 points, 10 rebounds). Emma Montanari (17 points, three rebounds, three steals) and Taniyah Thomas (nine points, seven rebounds, three steals) had strong games.
HICKORY RIDGE 85, RAGSDALE 51
Ragsdale 14 17 14 6 — 51
Hickory Ridge 26 22 18 19 — 85
RAGSDALE 51 — Parker 27, J. Boddie 12, Williams 5, A. Boddie 4, Myers 3
HICKORY RIDGE 85 — Leathers 23, Gidney 21, Powell 15, Duley 13, Ritter 8, Johnson 3, Watkins 2
Notable: Hickory Ridge’s Amya Leathers lead the Ragin Bulls with 23 points, six rebounds and six assists. Ma-Kaela Gidney added 21 points, seven assists and six steals.
Records: Ragsdale 16-10; Hickory Ridge 20-8
LINCOLN CHARTER 45, LINCOLNTON 30
Lincolnton 12 8 0 10 — 30
Lincoln Charter 12 9 13 11 — 45
LINCOLNTON 30 — Tillman 8, Rhyne 7, Johnson 5, Smith 4, Elmore 2, De Los Santo 2, Bryant 2
LINCOLN CHARTER 45 — Claire David 12, Taylor Riggenbach 8, Martha Guinle 8, Symphani Stevens 8, Brenna Barbier 6, Kaylyn Cherry 3
Records LCHS 20-6 Lincolnton 12-14
Notable: Lincoln Charter got 12 points, nine rebounds from Claire David in a first-round playoff win.
MALLARD CREEK 64, PAGE 21
Mallard Creek 17 17 18 12 — 64
Page 3 10 3 5 — 21
MALLARD CREEK 64 — My’Asia Young 15, Kiara Anderson 17, McGuire 7, Londyn Campbell 12, Easterling 9, Campbell 4, Tendall 5, Karpeh 5, Stukes 2
PAGE 21 — Lola V. 8, Mason G. 4, Porsha T. 5, Ansley B. 2, Emma P. 2
Notable: Junior My’Asia Young finished with 15 points, six rebounds, and two steals. Junior Kiara Anderson finished with 17 points, 10 rebounds, and four steals.
Records: Mallard Creek 25-3
NORTH MECKLENBURG 71, SOUTHEAST GUILFORD 32
North Meck 23 15 20 13 — 71
Southeast Guildford 8 8 9 7 — 32
NORTH MECKLENBURG 71 — Lenise Joseph 24, Morgan Knox 14, Charlotte Coyour 11, Shanon Hoover 10, Reid 4, Mobley 4, Pimentel 2, Johnson 2
SOUTHEAST GUILFORD 32 — Sophia Stevens 13, Totten 5, Earhardt 4, Odom 3, Spatkova3, Wade 2, Robinson 2
This story was originally published February 25, 2025 at 9:10 PM.
