JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A tough first half made it a long game for the St. Augustine girls basketball team.
The Yellow Jackets endured a rough start against Melbourne Palm Bay in a 67-36 loss in the Class 5A state semifinals on Thursday afternoon at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland. It was St. Augustine’s first final four trip since 2001.
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The Yellow Jackets led one time, 3-2, just a minute and a half into the game. Things spiraled quickly from there as Palm Bay roared to a 21-point halftime lead and never looked back.
St. Augustine (26-2) entered having won 21 consecutive games.
Janiyah Jackson had a solid game for the Yellow Jackets, posting a double-double (16 rebounds, 12 points). Ronnie Hannah followed with six points.
The cold start coupled with a Palm Bay team that was red hot from just about everywhere on the court took away the suspense. Palm Bay erased St. Augustine from the 3-point arc (4 for 25) while hitting nearly half of its tries from 3.