The Old Barn Went Out In Style

It has been the home for Rocky Mount High School basketball for nearly 12 lustrums.  John Wayne asked Judge Parker in the movie Rooster Cogburn how long was a Lustrum?  The answer five years.  During that time the old lady called the Gryphon Gym has seen four boys teams bring home banners that proudly hang on her walls.  Her walls are decorated with individual State Champions throughout the schools sports history.  Conference championship banners, banners honoring legends who went on to greater basketball as high as the pros.  There is even one of the best athlete in North Carolina in 2005.  Her walls are full.  If more banners are to be hung, there needs to be a bigger wall.

Friday night was suppose to be the last games but Mother Nature decided that the old barn needed to have one more so Hertford County closed school early Friday due to possible tornado's just so the Rocky Mount High School gym could have two days of glory instead of that Final Friday night.

So neighbors from all across Rocky Mount jammed into the old barn Friday night to witness Northern Nash and Rocky Mount play for the fifth time in a season.  This night there had never been a more important game in the history of Northern  Nash -Rocky Mount girls sports.  A trip to Fayetteville and the 3-A girls Regional hung in the balance.

Basking in victory after a solid win over their most bitter rival people stay on the floor more than an hour to celebrate and just stand on the floor.

Saturday a not so bitter rival Hertford County came to play a game which meant as much to them as a victory for us could possible be.  Since Rocky Mount has been at the 3-A level Hertford County has been a consistent foe in just about every sport and for the most part the Gryphons have held the upper hand.  Like the Northern Nash girls were thinking  on Friday  The Bears knowing what victory could provide wanted badly to win the last game ever at the old Rocky Mount gym.

The Gryphons boys did what they were suppose to do and took care of business  as they posted a 14 point victory and they too will join the Ladies in Fayetteville but on Wednesday instead of Tuesday. Game times are now set.  The girls are in action on Tuesday night at 7.00pm against undefeated West Craven in the Crown Coliseum.  Wednesday the boys will play at 7pm in the Coliseum and once again against West Craven.  Note yesterday I reported the girls were playing in the Arena, not so as they too will play in the big house

The Gryphon Gym did all it could  the last weekend of it's Gryphon life.  Made sure the girls beat hated Northern Nash with every seat taken.  Then the game on Saturday  the game that wasn't suppose to be,  nearly played to a packed house.  The old Lady was good to the Gryphons one more time and ushered the two Gryphon teams  to another level of competition.  There is nothing more that we could ask of her except host a State Championship celebration in 13 days like we did in 2010.  It would be nice to celebrate one more time.

Good Day To Be A Gryphon

One day after the girls punched their ticket to the 3-A basketball Regional the boys team joined them with a solid 80-66 win over Hertford County and by doing so the Gryphons go out of the old gym double Sectional winners and both head on to the Eastern Regional.

The second game in a row belonged to the big men as Terrill Hilliard and Donte Battle combined for 40 points 21-Hilliard and 19 for Battle as the Gryphons put together a solid effort in the first half to lead 46-27.  Rocky Mount had only five turnovers in the first half but sloppy play lead to five in the third quarter alone as Hertford County got some hot shooting from Jqwan Ruffin who had 29 for the game.

Hertford Couny cut it to eight early in the fourth quarter  but they kept themselves in the game by making 16-17 free throws.  The Gryphons spurted back to keep the Bears at arms length behind.

Levon Brutus added another 16 points to the score board for the Gryphon but Hertford County had no one else helping Ruffin that hit double figures.  Donte Battle had ten boards  and Brian Beale had 11 for the Bears.

This is the third straight Sectional title for the Gryphons and they will be making the trip to Fayetteville for the second year in a row.  They will play West Craven losers of only one game all season.  West Craven and Rocky Mount squared off in the Sectional final last year in Rocky Mount with the Gryphons winning 101-85.  So this game could really be a run and gun game.

The Lady Gryphons will play Tuesday night at Crown Arena in Fayetteville the small building in which the Gryphons played in last year.  Wednesday when the boys play they will be playing in the big Arena across the parking lot..

Today marked the last game ever to be played in Gryphon gym.  Roscoe Speight of Speight's Trophy House told me he was here for the first one in 1953 and he wasn't going to miss the last one.  I think to everyone surprise the house was near full for today's game as there was a nice contingent of Bears fans.  There weren't many seats available considering most folks didn't know the boys were not playing last night  but many came back today.  They came back to bask in the joy of victory but to be able to say I was there for the last game.

Gryphon Girls Regional Bound

Like so many of the other weekly  Friday night  Gryphon-Knights match ups the Lady Knights stormed out of the gate and and took a first quarter double digit lead.  Tonight they got the lead with offense From Jasmine Griffin who scored 11 by half, not like the others when their smothering defense had  gained them the advantage.

Sophomore Carmen Richardson was the only Gryphon early that found any flow to her game and she score ten points by the half  but as the second quarter got going her team mates joined in and by the half the the Gryphons had trimmed the Knight lead to 31-28.  The Gryphons playing their final girls game ever at the old Rocky Mount gym decided that the last game in the old barn was not going to be a defeat and surely not at the hands of their arch rivals as the Gryphons spurted early and often to secure a Regional spot with a 69-53 over Northern Nash.

Jasmine Griffin lead Northern with 19.  Khadijah  Richarson had 12.  No other Knight had more than five which kind of hits the nail on the head in this one. Griffin also was the leading rebounder  for Northern  pulling down seven but she was the only Knight to get more than three.  Rocky Mount just plain got more help in this one than what Northern could contribute.

Northern will finish the season 20-4 and all four losses come from the Gryphons.  There has probably never been a more important game ever that meant so much as this one tonight in any Rocky Mount- Northern Nash girls  game.  Yes there have been games for conference championships played against each other but tonight was for a Sectional crown.

Up next on Tuesday is the #1 seed in the bracket West Craven who beat Nash Central 74-47.  Nash Central was the highest seeded team 13th still playing going into tonight and they get undefeated West Craven.  Rocky Mount squares off Tuesday night the time will be forth coming.

Rocky Mount had completely dominated the guard play in the third quarter outscoring Northern 22-9.  It was down to if we can't  steal it, foul quickly early in the fourth and the Lady Gryphons made just enough fouls shots to stay and arms length away the entire fourth quarter and towards the end stacked the lead to 15 or more.

The Lady Gryphons dominated the boards 42-21.  Tia Hudgins scored nine but had ten boards.  J'Kyra Brown had her usual 32 points and another ten boards.  The Gryphon difference this night was Carmen Richardson who scored 18 which I believe is her career high and grabbed eight rebounds.  The Gryphons had three rebounders to get more than the leading rebounder for Northern Jasmine Griffin.

This is Pam Gainey's second  trip to the Regional her first in  2004.  She will now sit in the stands Saturday afternoon and watch to see if husband Mike can get the Gryphon boys to the Regional for a Wednesday match up against West Craven who beat conference  foe South Central 67-57.  Should both Gryphon teams make it it would be the first time in school history for both teams to be in the basketball Regional the same year.

Game time is 1.00pm Saturday afternoon for the boys 3-A Sectional final with Hertford County.  Some times maybe the good lord looks out for you for  if the boys have played tonight there was no room for the Hertford County fans as tonight once again the girls played in front of a jammed packed crowd.

Rocky Mount heads to the regional 24-2.  Northern who has lost four straight this year to Rocky Mount could have very easily won a Sectional somewhere across the east tonight but Rocky Mount was not the team to be in the same bracket with.