THEY ARE THE CHAMPIONS:GREENSBORO GALAXY GIRLS

GREENSBORO GALAXY GIRLS AAU BASKETBALL TEAM WINS NATIONAL TITLE………..
*****Special to greensborosports.com by Milton Jenkins with the team at the National Tournament up in Kingsport, Tennessee****

The Galaxy girls kept their commitment,determination and desire in tact and went on to win the National Title in AAU Girls Basketball in Kingsport, Tennessee over the host First Tennessee Stars 47 to 41. Galaxy went 3and 0 in pool play and a perfect 5 and 0 in the Championship bracket which included double elimination. The First Tennessee Stars had to win three games the previous day in order to meet for the final. They came in as one of the tournament favorites to win it all. No one had really heard of the Greensboro Galaxy club when all 45 teams were introduced at the opening cermonies starting on July 11th. The Galaxy girls only had eight players whom mild demeanor may have caught many teams off-guard. They were out manned as many as seven players in some games. Galaxy girls kept their same composure as they march into the beautiful spacious Dobbins gymnasium that resembles a college facility. First Tennessee club had all their fans in the spectrum and even had it mentioned on the local news promoting their appearance the night before. However the Galaxy club seemed not affected by any of the preliminary activities. Greensboro Galaxy got off to a quick lead behind the shooting of Brittany Drew (Page) and Precious Tonkins (Grimsley) whom nailed three pointers from beyond the arch. Brittany whom is the three point specialist nailed two and Precious Tonkins whom rarely shoots knocked down both of her attempts. Brittany eight first half points and Tonkins six allowed Galaxy to keep the game close as First Tennessee took a commanding 23 to 19 half time lead.
After the half the Galaxy girls kept their hustling ways and started to dominate the boards led by Desiree Drayton (Dudley) 13 rebounds and Leandra Hicks (Dudley) 9 rebounds. However Galaxy still trailed 38 to 32. Then all of a sudden Miranda Jenkins(Eastern Guilford) started to take over. She knocked down two three pointers in a row to tie the game up 38 to 38 with only 4:22 left in the game. First Tennessee went to the foul line and converted 1one of two and had a 39 to 38 lead. Khadejah Wilkerson (Allen Middle) rebounded a missed shot and put Galaxy ahead 40 to 39 with 1:35 left on the clock. First Tennesee then hit a 15 footer to take the lead 41 to 40. Both crowds were getting more nervous than the players themselves. Miranda Jenkins drove with a runner and missed and Leandra Hicks grabbed the rebound and put it back with 30 seconds left in the game and gave Galaxy a lead they would never relinquish as First Tennessee had to foul the rest of the way. Galaxy defense shut First Tennessee down the remaining seconds of the game and Brittany Drew converted on three of four free throws to close the coffin on the Stars 47 to 41. Brittany Drew (Page) led the club with 14 points while Miranda Jenkins (Eastern Guilford) and Desiree Drayton (Dudley) each contributed 10. One of the key factors in the final game was Precious Tonkin (Grimsley) whom saved her best for last by scoring 7 points which caught the Stars completely by surprise but not the Galaxy players themselves because they knew it was just a matter of time. Haley Newman (Northwest) came off the bench and gavesome much needed defense at the right moment plus her 15 foot jump shot that she nailed was very pivitol. Brooklyn Davis (Smith) grabbed two rebounds and dished out a much needed assist for a three pointer that was hit by Miranda Jenkins in the wanning minutes .

In winning this championship much credit goes to the coaches Ursula Williams, John Newman and David Wilkerson and the parents whom stuck by this team all year. They had some ups and downs and obstacles that they had to over come to get to this point. Whether it was some players moving on or coach and parents misunderstanding or beating their older Galaxy club, they never allowed anything to stop them from accomplishing their goals of a “National Championship”. Many of these girls will now go to their respective schools and will play against each other in the coming years. Schools such as Dudley, Page,Smith, Allen Middle, Grimsley,Northwest and Eastern Guilford will benefit from some very special girls whom understand the word class,hard work,determination,composure and “never say never”. While up in Tennessee one of the things that many of the coaches kept saying was that they liked the way Galaxy girls carried them selves. Fans were saying things like, “They act the way young ladies should act”. They were never loud. They dressed appropriately and never walked around drawing attention to themselves. The Hotel where they were staying was so impressed that the owner brought his whole family to the semi-final game and ordered pizza for the whole team after the double over time win.When they had a curfew that was placed on them by the coaches, they never balked at it or decided to do their own thing. There were never any incidents that broke their focus. Just maybe that is some of the reasons that they are “National Champions” and no one will ever be able to take that away.

Game stats stats:

Miranda Jenkins (Eastern Guilford) 10 points,6 rebounds, 2 assist, 1 block
Desiree Drayton (Dudley) 10 points, 13 rebounds, 2 assist, 1 steal
Brittany Drew (Page) 14 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist
Khadejah Wilkerson (Allen Middle) 2 points, 5 rebounds, 1 steal
Leandra Hicks (Dudley) 2 points, 9 rebounds
Brooklyn Davis ( Smith) 2 rebounds, 1 assist
Haley Newman (Northwest) 2 points, 3 rebounds
Precious Tonkins ( Northwest) 7 points, 3 assist