By Jarrett Hoffman
The Elizabeth City State Vikings’ hopes for a second straight CIAA championship remain alive following a 70-58 semifinal victory over the Claflin Panthers.
NyAsia Blango was named the game’s MVP after scoring a team-high 18 points, connecting on five three-pointers. She also posted five rebounds and three steals.
She was one of five Vikings to score in double-figures, followed by Alanis Hill, who scored 15 points, shooting 11-of-12 from the free throw line.
Nya Morris and Destiny Coleman each scored nine points for the Panthers, with the former also grabbing eight rebounds.
Blango’s aggressive early scoring accounted for eight of her team’s 17 points in the first quarter, including knocking down two three-pointers.
On the heels of the Viking guards’ scoring outburst, the team went into the second quarter with a nine-point lead despite shooting only 35% overall.
Elizabeth City State would build on its lead and maintain it on its way to a wire-to-wire victory.
Not only was ECSU able to score by committee, but they also played defense by committee, with seven players recording steals.
Vikings coach Tynesha Lewis talked about how her team has bought into her philosophy and how it has led to their success.
“I recruit starters; every last person on this team would probably start somewhere else. They wanted to be part of a championship culture. They sacrificed all year, and that’s hard for everybody. Learning roles and changing different roles has been rough along the way, but when they buy in, we’re tough.”
The Vikings will be the first team to appear in three straight conference championship games in the CIAA since Shaw won four straight from 2011-2014.
Last year, in their second straight CIAA title appearance, Elizabeth City State finally broke through, winning their first-ever CIAA championship, defeating Shaw 55-40.
Meanwhile, the Panthers conclude their best season since joining the CIAA with their best tournament finish.
They returned with a 17-11 overall record, their first winning season since their first year in the conference in 2018-2019.
Third-year head coach Terrence Jenkins talked about what he believed was the turning point for his team, leading them to this point.
“At Christmas break, we weren’t where we were supposed to be, where we wanted to be. We went home 3-6 [overall record], but I will say this. I told my AD, my President, and all my friends we’d be fine because the morale and the togetherness were there. I [saw] that they wanted it. We didn’t get the results we wanted going into winter break, but I knew coming back that we would turn this thing around.”
Elizabeth City State will now await the Fayetteville State-Virginia State semifinal matchup winner.
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