The Sandhills Community College basketball team was pushed to the limit before defeating Virginia Peninsula CC 87-85 in overtime to capture the Region 10 tournament title in Martinsville, VA, on Sunday afternoon.
The regular-season champion Flyers needed a three by freshman Mylon Campbell with seven seconds remaining in regulation to force the extra period. Trailing 85-81 with under two minutes remaining in overtime, baskets by Kendall Smith and Damien Robinson retied the game before Isaiah Upchurch scored the game-winner in transition off a steal by Smith.
Zack Noel grabbed the rebound off a final attempt by the Gators, wrapping up the Flyers’ 12th victory in a row. Campbell led the way with 23 points, followed by Smith with 17.
Coach Mike Apple’s No. 5 ranked Division III squad will host the mid-Atlantic District Tournament on Saturday and Sunday. The Flyers take a record of 25-6 into a 1 p.m. game against Pennsylvania Highlands CC (16-15), the Region 20 tournament champion.
Virginia Peninsula also qualified for the four-team district field and will meet Owens CC (OH) at 3:30 p.m. at The Hangar. The winner of Sunday’s district championship game will automatically qualify for a berth at the national tournament in Herkimer, NY, on March 12-15. The Flyers will be seeking to qualify for the seventh year in a row.
Led by Upchurch with 24 points, the Flyers had advanced to Sunday’s title contest with a 66-63 victory over Camp CC on Saturday. The team’s struggles on the offensive end continued on Sunday against an opponent that had upset host team Patrick and Henry CC in Saturday’s other semi-final.
The Flyers fell behind 8-1 and trailed by as many as 10 points before closing the gap to 40-37 at the intermission. They drew even at 48-48 on a three-point play in transition by Smith with 15 minutes remaining in the game.
Trailing 73-67 at the three-minute mark, a short jumper by Amarie Liburd helped get the Flyers going again. Later, following a timeout, there were seven seconds remaining when Campbell tied the game up at 76-76 with his dramatic three, leading to the extra period.
Upchurch and Noel were the other double-figure scorers on Sunday, with 13 points apiece.
~Written by Sandhills Sentinel contributor C. Bergmann. Photo by Donna Ford.
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