The Okolona Lady Chieftains punched their ticket to the MHSAA Class 1A semifinals Wednesday night with a 58-42 victory over the Blue Mountain Lady Cougars at Itawamba Community College.
Okolona controlled the game from the opening tip, jumping out to a 14-3 lead by the end of the first quarter. The Lady Chieftains extended that advantage to 29-16 at halftime behind a strong first-half performance from Prommyss Small, who scored 11 of her team-high 18 points before the break.
The Lady Chieftains continued to build separation in the third quarter, taking a 44-25 lead into the final period. Sanaa Chandler added 14 points to help pace Okolona’s balanced attack.
Blue Mountain mounted a fourth-quarter rally, cutting the deficit to eight points at one stage behind a big finish from Beiga Foote. Foote scored 11 of her 22 points in the fourth quarter, while Dynasty Prather finished with 14 for the Lady Cougars. However, Okolona answered down the stretch to secure the 16-point win.
With the victory, Okolona improves to 26-5 on the season and advances to the Class 1A semifinals on Monday, where they will face Simmons at the “Big House.”
Blue Mountain closes its season with a 22-10 record.
