SANDALWOOD-When the sixth graders from Highlands missed out on playing for a championship two years ago they didn’t lose focus of their goal.
Instead they took it out on the competition by winning the 2016 city championship. But why stop there when you are one of the finest middle school girls basketball teams ever to be assembled?
Why not go for two championships? Well Saturday night they went for it and won as Highlands defeated Arlington 40-15 to become the 2017 Duval County Middle School Girls Basketball Champions.
Highlands dominated from the opening tip, scoring 18 unanswered points. Se’lah Reddick scored 22 points in the first half and would go on to be named MVP.
She is an amazing player following in the footsteps of other Highlands greats and for head coach Rod Carter it’s all about the players mindset. “ Players come to us with a certain basketball I.Q and knowledge. We’ve been fortunate to have the likes of DayNeshia Banks ( Ribault/ Ole Miss Commit), Glenisha Harkless, Se’Lah Reddick, and Nyla Allen before her and they have been the reason for our success.”
Teams don’t come close when they play Highlands. Their tenacious play and lights out shooting makes it tough for any teams to matchup and Arlington was no exception. The East division champions had a great season, but unfortunately ran into a team that simply is in a class of their own.