Staff report

CHINA GROVE — Carson’s girls basketball team lost 70-54 to North Davidson in Tuesday’s regional semifinal.

Wingate signee Emily Hege scored 33 points for the fourth-seeded Black Knights (25-2).

Catawba signee Mary Spry had 21 points and 13 rebounds for the top-seeded Cougars (25-4).

“Disappointing night, but an amazing season,” Carson head coach Brooke Stouder said. “If you’d told me in November we’d be in a regional semifinal, that we’d win 25 games, that we would be conference and conference tournament champions, I would have said, ‘No way.’ We had two players with any experience. Two seniors who played a lot of minutes didn’t play at all last year. This  team definitely over-achieved. Really proud of this group.”

Carson did not get off to a good start, missing a lot of point-blank shots, while North Davidson was hot, making outside shots over Carson’s 2-3 zone. The Black Knights led 20-9 after a quarter.

The Cougars came back in the second quarter with a triangle and two defense focused on Hege and Lettie Michael. After Spry hit a 3-pointer right before halftime, North Davidson’s lead was down to 37-35.

“They made eight 3-pointers in the first half (three by Hege), but we were in pretty good position at the half,” Stouder said.

North Davidson got the first couple of buckets to start the second half to regain momentum, and Carson never got over the hump.

It was a 10-point game with about two and half minutes to go, and North Davidson stretched it out to the final margin from the foul line.

North Davidson was 20-for-23 on free throws, while Carson was 10-for-20. That was a key factor. Hege made more free throws (12) than Carson’s team did.

“We also gave up 10 offensive rebounds and we didn’t feel like their rebounding was as strong as some of their other aspects,” Stouder said. “That hurt us, and I think we got fatigued some in the second half.”

Kyndall Moore, who averages about 4 points, scored 14 for the Black Knights. That was another big factor.

“They hit shots and they hit free throws,” Stouder said. “That’s a very good team, and Hege is a special player.”

Carson got four 3-pointers and 17 points from Hannah Isley in her final game for the Cougars.

Also scoring for Carson were seniors Makayla Johnson, Aliayah White and Camden Corley.

N. Davidson    20   17   15   18  — 70

Carson                9    26   10  9   — 54

N. DAVIDSON — Hege 33, Moore 14, Michael 13, Minton 4, Mitchell 3, Altiers 3.

CARSON — Spry 21, H. Isley 17, Johnson 8, White 6, Corley 2.