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JBSA News
NEWS | Jan. 26, 2009

Randolph topped twice by Cole on hardwood

By Thomas Warner 12th Flying Training Wing Public Affairs

A pair of close losses last week may have been beneficial to Randolph High's boys' and girls' basketball teams. 

District rival Cole High School handed the RHS boys and girls back-to-back three-point defeats Jan. 23, but the up-tempo atmosphere gave the Randolph teams a glimpse of what things will be like if they advance to the 2A postseason. 

"The big crowd and abundance of energy had something to do with our kids," said first-year Randolph girls coach Stacey Bessire. "I thought we lost control of ourselves a little bit at the end." 

The RHS girls lost 40-37 to Fort Sam Houston-based Cole High and the Randolph boys were beaten 49-46. A three-way tie in Division 27-2A now exists for the boys, with Randolph sharing the top spot with Harper High and Cole. 

On the girls' side, Randolph is now in second place behind two tied teams - Harper and Cole. 

The Ro-Hawk girls (16-6, 6-2 in District 27-2A) went scoreless in the final two minutes of play against Cole High, after taking a 37-36 lead on Jazzmin Washington's 3-point shot. Washington fouled-out of the contest and in the fast pace of the late sequence, Randolph faded. 

"I told the players before the game they had to stay focused and not let emotions overcome us, but I think that's what happened out there," said Bessire. "We played some great basketball in stretches, but there were some times that it got away from us." 

Elena Gumbs had 19 points and was eight-of-10 from the free-throw line. Washington scored nine points and Randolph was aided by good rebounding from a handful of players. 

"Alyssa Chenaille is still working back from an injury but she gave us some good energy underneath," said Bessire. "Tamoya Morrison also grabbed some rebounds that would have benefitted us, could we have shot better on the inside. Our whole team struggled connecting with the basket underneath. 

"Team-wise, we need to refocus and play hard to regain momentum. Our last regular-season game will be against Harper, and they are currently in front of us in the standings." 

RHS boys also fall 

The three big guns - Kyle McNally, Stephen Pompa and Mark Hopkins - produced the majority of the points in Randolph's 49-46 loss to Cole. 

Hopkins was off-target on the game's final shot and Randolph came up short after rallying from 10 points down. 

"I can't say enough about how proud I am for the kids' effort," said RHS coach Tim Gendron. "The third quarter was simply our undoing." 

The Ro-Hawks (20-2, 5-1) battled from a deficit to pull within 25-22 at halftime, then scored only one field goal in the third quarter. Pompa's six points all came in the first half, on a pair of 3-pointers, and Hopkins had the team's only bucket in the third stanza. 

"We went 16-of-21 from the foul line, so we accomplished what we wanted to there," Gendron said. "The team was very disappointed with the outcome. They expected to win." 

A full house, split with fans from both Cole and Randolph, watched as the teams got physical with each another but Cole had more scoring balance, with seven players scoring at least five points. Jullian Jones was the team's leader with 11, then LaQuan Smith had nine. Three other players combined for 22 markers. 

Josh Dodgen and Matt Atwell combined for just four Randolph points but rebounded, along with Jacorian Duffield, well enough to give the team a chance at a victory, said Gendron. 

"We've had two straight Friday games that had playoff atmosphere and we'll play another one this week against Natalia High, which is in first place in their district. We want our team to be ready for the postseason." 

Were they to earn a bid, the postseason would begin the week of Feb. 16 for the RHS girls and the week of Feb. 23 for the boys.