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THE MADISON COUNTY (GA) JOURNAL. THURSDAY. FEBRUARY 19. 2009 — PAGE 3B Region 8-AAAA Basketball Tournament Juvonna Fleming attempts a free throw during Madison County’s Friday win over Rockdale County. The Lady Raiders shot 42 free throws in the victory. Jessica Brown/ MainStreet Newspapers Lady Raiders win physical contest 45-pt. win clinches state tourney berth By Ben Munro ben@mainstreetnews.com WINDER—An easy win it was. A comfortable game it was not. Madison County (21-5) beat Rockdale County 71-26 Friday in a rough-and-tumble affair to advance to the region semifinals Tuesday against Loganville (18-8) in Winder. The victory also clinched a fourth-straight state tournament appearance for the Lady Raiders. Rockdale County (5-18) racked up in the foul department, com mitting three intentional fouls — two in the first half — while sending the Lady Raiders to the floor hard on several occasions. Madison County shot 42 free throws, hitting 32 of them. The Lady Bulldogs" physical play was expected. “We knew this coming in" Lady Raider coach Dan Lampe said. “We scouted them." But Madison County stepped up to the challenge — bypassing three-point shots, driving hard into the paint and drawing fouls. The Lady Raiders hit 20-of-26 free throw attempts in the first half and took a 37-18 lead into the locker room. “That's the main thing." Lampe said. “We didn’t settle for the out side shot." Courtney Freeman led a trio of scorers in double figures, finish ing with 20 points. Lauren Smith added 16 and Shantydra Arnold threw in 13. Nine different players scored as Lampe slowly worked his subs in during the fourth quarter. Madison County allowed just eight points in the second half and picked up 20 steals in the game, compared to just eight turnovers. “That's a great ratio,” Lampe said. “I can definitely live with that." Madison County took care of business on a day — Friday the 13 th — when Region 8-AAAA's other no. 1 seed tumbled. Cedar Shoals stunned Salem 58T6, knocking the Lady Seminoles out of the tournament. Salem beat Madison County by three points earlier this year. “That was huge." Lampe said, adding that he would have liked to have had another shot at Salem. MADISON CO. 71 ROCKDALE CO. 26 RCHS 11 7 5 3 — 26 MCHS 22 15 17 17 — 71 Leading scorers: C. Freeman 20, Smith 16, Arnold 13 Valiant Raiders fall short in OT T.J. McGuire gets airborne around the rim in Madison County’s 61-58 overtime loss to Rockdale County Saturday. Ben Munro/staff By Ben Munro ben@mainstreetnews.com WINDER—Madison County’s Seth Fleming drilled a pair of three-pointers in the final 21 seconds of regulation to force overtime against Rockdale County, but the Raiders couldn't recreate the magic in the extra period. Madison County fell 61-58 to the top-seeded Bulldogs Saturday in the region tourna ment. denying the program its first trip to the state tournament in 12 years. "It was a heartbreak game to be that close to beating the no. 1 team,” coach Steve Crouse said. Madison County (8-18), which upset Cedar Shoals four days earlier, gave no. 1 seed Rockdale County fits, though. The Raiders led 23-20 at the half and later rallied from a 52-48 deficit in the waning moments to force overtime. Fleming, who finished with 14 points, nailed a three-pointer in the comer with 21 seconds left to cut the lead to 52-51. Rockdale County followed with a pair of free throws, but Fleming struck again with a three-pointer— his fourth of the game — from near the top of the key to tie the game. But missed free throws and turnovers would haunt Madison County in overtime. With the game tied 56-56, the Raiders missed four-straight attempts at the charity stripe. Madison County then turned the ball over on three-straight possessions, as Rockdale County took a 60-56 lead. Fleming later fouled out with 19 seconds left, leaving the hot- shooting Raider on the bench for the final stretch. The Raiders trailed by three in the final seconds, but never got a good look at the basket in their final possession. With a defender on him, Ben Morris missed a three-pointer as time — and the Raiders' upset bid — expired. "They played so hard and they did really well,” Crouse said. “I was very, very proud of every thing they did.” Madison County grabbed more offensive rebounds than Rockdale County (18-13) and had more assists (15-11), but turned the ball over 19 times and made just 10-of-20 free throws. Crouse said the elements were in place for an upset — care ful preparation, game-pace and desire — but the Raiders came up short again in painful fashion. “We had a good game plan; our kids executed it to the best of their abilities,” Crouse said. “We took them to overtime. I just wish it could have had a dif ferent outcome,” ROCKDALE CO. 61, MADISON CO. 58 OT MCHS 9 14 14 17 (4) - 58 RCHS 9 11 19 15 (7)-61 Scorers: McCrary 17, Fleming 14, Raines 11, Davis 7, Smith 4, Morris 3, McGuire 2 Support fladison County Raiders ... continued from page IB L»J : t»T«ri n K Madison County will experience a major overhaul in the backcourt due to graduation, but returns lead ing scorer Patrick McCrary — who's nearing 1,000 career points — in the front court. McCrary was selected to the all-tournament team, one of only three juniors. He averaged 14 points a game and a hair under 10 rebounds this year. The Raiders also return Bradley Raines who averaged double fig ures in scoring. Still, Crouse thought everything was in place this year to finally crack that ceiling. “They took us farther and closer than we’ve ever been,” Crouse said of this year’s team. “I thought this was going to be the group. I really did.” So Crouse offered a parting trib ute to his seniors, who could have easily shrugged the postseason off after a 7-17 regular season, he said. Instead, it came three points shy of a state tournament berth. “I said guys, ‘We're going to push through this one year, and we’re going to get there,"’ Crouse said. “And I said, ‘when we do, I’ll call you and bring you back.'” NOW OPEN C Mexican Grille 706-783-2129 .■WnrJtefs at Town Center lled Ifghi in Comer Caregiver Workshop: TheSU'tiiitt SiGi.iins vjCorvghhti A workshop offered for Professional and Family Caregivers B;irry J;icubs, (f/CtT’ Psy-D. Author of "Emotv.mal Guide for the Cureoivi:r" Friday, April 3'" 2009 ml iot: frl > ■ -M5 :i-m, .UkTAil ii: iSfi'HTfl.S ii,3,;J.!Li.i|rji| jlfijifiT.! hiograin: iin.-l :.M .*jn. ji L:Vi'i:7:V.! 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