By CURTIS ROCKWELL/Sports Director

POPLARVILLE — The Harrison Central girl’s basketball program has captured 13 state championship titles over the past five decades.
And the Red Rebelettes will get a chance to add that extra point next week.
Harrison Central used a 16-2 run that spanned from the middle of the third quarter through the middle of the fourth period en route to a close 45-42 win over Northwest Ramkin here at White Coliseum on the campus of Pearl River County Community College Friday afternoon.

The decision moves HCHS to 26-5 overall, but more importantly moves second-year head coach Sandra Rushing’s crew into the overall Class 7A Final Four next week at The Mississippi Coliseum in Jackson.

The Lady Cougars end the season at 24-8.

“I think for us to be here first time with these girls, and I think they had to adjust to the moment.” Rushing said. “Northwest Rankin is a very talented, well-coached team, and I’ve got to give them credit. You could see our inexperience down the stretch, when they mounted their comeback.”
The teams traded blows back and forth in the third quarter, when HCHS junior Dandy Dozen standout Saniyah Murray began to heat up. Her back-to-back baskets inside the lane ignited that decisive 16-2 spurt, and in the process erased a slight three point deficit and sent HCHS into the fourth period up 34-25. Murray had nine points in the quarter, after scoring just two points in the first half, and Krista Clarke hit a big 3-pointer at the buzzer for the Rede Rebelettes.
Murray’s two free throws with 5:33 to play gave HCHS its first double-digit lead of the day at 36-25, and P.J. Floyd’s old-fashioned three point play around the mid-way point of the final frame ended that run and put the Red Rebelettes up 41-26.

Northwest Rankin cut into the lead thanks to a few treys down the stretch, but HCHS ran the clock out to end the game.
Murray paced HCHS with 17 points, while Floyd chipped in 13 points to the winning effort. Autumn Keeler added seven points.

Murray picked up her third foul a minute into the second quarter, sat out the rest of the half, and played the whole second half with three fouls.
“(Murray) has been in foul trouble a few times, and she’s a heady player.” Rushing added. “She knows the situation and makes smart decisions. I thought we did a great job of attacking the basket, and getting good shots. We’re going to Jackson, baby!”
Melia McCellis tallied a game-high 21 points for the Lady Cougars.
It marks Harrison Central’s first trip to the Big House in three years, and HCHS is in search of its first state title since 2005.