Mallard Creek girls trounce Ardrey Kell, head to first title game

Since many regarded Mallard Creek High’s girls basketball as the best program to have never advanced to a state championship game, Mavericks coach Karyln Dixon reminded her team when the playoffs began two weeks ago what lay ahead of them.

In a convincing, 59-44 victory over Ardrey Kell at Lenoir-Rhyne’s Shuford Gymnasium on Wednesday, Mallard Creek reached that long-pursued goal.

“This program is very rich in history, but this is our first time winning this,” Dixon said. “This means a lot for our program.”

The Mavericks’ win in the Class 8A Western championship advances them into next week’s state title game at Winston-Salem’s Joel Coliseum against the winner of Wednesday’s Wilmington Hoggard-Willow Spring Eastern regional final.

Mallard Creek (23-6) established its dominance with 11 straight points in the game’s first three minutes, and held Ardrey Kell without a field goal until the 1:33 mark of the first quarter.

“We played them earlier in the year,” Dixon said of the Knights, whom Mallard Creek had defeated, 69-60, on Nov. 28. “So we had a feel for what they do.”

Ardrey Kell made a run at the Mavericks in the third quarter, closing within 33-29 with 5:14 left in the period. But Mallard Creek had another surge left in it — a 12-2 run that lasted into the fourth quarter and pushed the lead to 45-31.

Kiara Anderson (23 points, 5 steals), My’Asia Young (15 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals) and Camri Hobbs (8 points, 8 rebounds) led the Mavericks, who were in their sixth Western Final Four and fifth Western regional title game; Mallard Creek had previously lost in the regional finals in 2011, 2017, 2018 and 2020.

The Knights finished 25-4 and saw their 19-game winning streak come to an end in the defeat.

Autumn Washington (13 points, 6 rebounds) and Rhegan Kent (10 points) led Ardrey Kell with Kent’s back-to-back 3-pointers in the third quarter getting the Knights as close as they would ever get at 33-29.

GAME SUMMARY

Mallard Creek 16 15 12 16 — 59

Ardrey Kell 7 12 12 13 — 44

MALLARD CREEK 59 — Easterling 2, My’Asia Young 15, Stone 5, Kiara Anderson 23, Campbell 2, Odoms 2, Faison 2, Hobbs 8. ARDREY KELL 44 — Autumn Washington 13, Rhegan Kent 10, Adarkwah 4, Mapp 4, Keenan 1, Veal 2, Hairston 2, Shelton 8.

Records: Mallard Creek 23-6, Ardrey Kell 25-4.

This story was originally published March 4, 2026 at 4:54 PM.