Southern Wayne’s Destiny Bullock attempts to gain possession of a loose ball while East Wake’s Sh’miah Hutchinson defends during their Quad County 3A game Friday evening. (Rudy Coggins|mountolivetribune.com)
Southern Wayne junior Nevaeh Hines-Bass (11) defends a shot by East Wake’s Jayleigh Woods during opening-half action Friday evening in Dudley. (Rudy Coggins|mountolivetribune.com)
Southern Wayne’s Wilberline Senatus (32) pulls down a rebound during first-period play against East Wake. (Rudy Coggins|mountolivetribune.com)
DUDLEY — Who is left to play? Southern Wayne head girls’ basketball coach Ricky Lofton will probably ask that question several times before Monday’s practice.
Destiny Bullock became the latest concussion victim after the Saints’ 29-24 loss to Quad County 3A rival East Wake Friday evening.
The freshman joins fellow freshman Azariah Jordan, who missed the game due to a concussion she endured against South Johnston Wednesday.
However, the list doesn’t end there.
Sophomore Kylie Hyde may be questionable after taking a hard shot late in the fourth quarter against East Wake.
And that’s not to mention Nevaeh Hines-Bass and Kymora Stokes, who both returned to the lineup after each suffered a concussion earlier this month against West Johnston.
Hines-Bass endured a hard, no-call foul that sidelined the junior guard late in the third quarter. She returned in the fourth and finished with a game- and team-high 16 points.
Stokes played with a heavily-taped right wrist, an injury she suffered after getting knocked down from behind by the physical Warriors.
“[Play] was just so physical and it took my girls out of the game,” Lofton said. “They got very frustrated. [East Wake] outplayed us, got more rebounds, steals … did what they had to do and we did not.”
The teams engaged in a turnover and held-ball fest after tip-off.
Hines-Bass scored the Saints’ first point – a free throw with 38.1 seconds to go. Up until then, she and her teammates had misfired on all 19 of their offensive possessions that resulted in seven missed field goals and 12 turnovers.
East Wake led 6-1 after the first period.
Hines-Bass’ two free throws, Wilberline Senatus’ offensive putback and Stokes’ 3-pointer off Yme Jean Baptiste’s assist pushed the Saints in front 8-7.
Southern Wayne entered halftime ahead 10-7.
Physical play continued throughout the second half.
Hines-Bass, Bullock and Stokes faced constant on-the-ball pressure that disrupted any rhythm the Saints attempted to establish offensively. Stokes converted 3 of 4 free throws in the second half and ended the night with six points.
Tied at 15-15 after three quarters, the Warriors (3-12 overall, 2-5 QCC) seized command in the final period. The visitors crashed the offensive glass, which resulted in several free-throw chances.
East Wake tallied 14 fourth-quarter points and collected just its second win against Southern Wayne in six tries since 2021.
“We couldn’t make shots, we couldn’t make layups, we couldn’t defend,” said a frustrated Lofton.
Southern Wayne (6-12, 3-5) visits West Johnston on Tuesday.
