Cardinal Newman girls win fourth-straight SCISA 3A state championship

SUMTER, S.C. — Despite playing the majority of the season with only eight players, the Cardinal Newman girls basketball team found a way to overcome.

Saturday afternoon in Sumter, the Cardinals topped First Baptist 54-44 to capture the program’s fourth-straight SCISA 3A state championship.

Future Gamecock Ashlyn Watkins ended her high school career in emphatic fashion, leading Cardinal Newman with 26 points and six blocks on the night. She leaves the Cardinals having won a state championship in all four of her years at the high school.

Freshman Lauren Jacobs also came up big in the win, posting 12 points, followed by Sabreya Monsanto with 11.

Head coach Asia Dozier has now led the Cardinals to state titles in each of her first two seasons with the program.