SALEM, Va. – Junior Sarah Parsons (Glen Allen, Va./J.R. Tucker) scored 20 points to lead second-seeded Randolph-Macon past third-seeded Lynchburg 84-69 in the semifinals of the Old Dominion Athletic Conference Tournament Saturday afternoon at the Salem Civic Center.
The Yellow Jackets (22-5) advance to the ODAC Championship Game on Sunday, March 2 at 1 p.m. against No. 4 Guilford. The teams split two games during the regular season, each winning on its home floor. The Quakers posted an 80-67 victory on Jan. 18, while R-MC won 80-74 on Feb. 15.
Parsons, a Second Team All-ODAC selection, was 6 for 11 from the floor and 7 for 9 from the free throw line. She was one of four Yellow Jackets to score in double figures. Junior First Team All-ODAC Taylor Huber (Ashland, Va./Patrick Henry) had 16 points, four assists and two steals. Sophomore Second Team All-ODAC Katie Anderson (Beaverdam, Va./Patrick Henry) added 14 points and corralled eight rebounds. Sophomore guard Khajae Hester (Virginia Beach, Va./Cape Henry) finished with 10 points.
The Yellow Jackets took an early 4-2 lead before a 9-3 spurt gave the Hornets (16-11) an 11-7 advantage six minutes into the contest. Hester had a pair of layups to cap a 15-0 run as R-MC took a 22-11 lead with 10:45 remaining in the first half, a lead it would never relinquish. The Yellow Jackets pushed their advantage to 13 at 38-25 with 3:25 left in the half before LC closed on a 10-4 run as R-MC took a 42-35 lead at the break. Chaney Forbush scored the final 12 points in the half for Lynchburg, finishing with 20 in the period. Parsons led the Yellow Jackets with 12 points, while Huber added eight.
R-MC started the second stanza with an 8-2 run in posting a 50-37 with 17:00 remaining. Lynchburg answered with an 11-2 spurt to trail 52-48 with 13:05 to go. The Yellow Jackets used a Huber trey, a layup by freshman Stephanie Staples (Mechanicsville, Va./Atlee) and two free throws by senior Paige Mills (Winchester, Va./Sherando) as R-MC pushed the lead to 11 at 59-48 with 10:30 left. The margin grew to 14 at 65-51 before an 11-2 run by the Hornets cut it to 67-62 with 5:40 remaining. The Yellow Jackets closed on a 17-7 run to make the final 84-69. Sophomore Lauren Vugteveen (Midlothian, Va./Amelia Academy) had three layups during the final four minutes and Hester went 4 for 4 from the free throw line in the final minute to secure the victory.
The Yellow Jacket defense held Lynchburg to 31.7% shooting from the floor (20-63) and forced 17 turnovers.