MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — McMinn Central junior Molly Masingale’s biggest impact Friday at the BlueCross Basketball Championships came on the defensive end and in the most crucial part of the game.
With the Chargerettes trailing Gibson County 43-38 with 4:46 to play in their TSSAA Class 2A semifinal, Masingale ignited her team with a demoralizing shot block. Over the next 2:08 of game clock, Masingale picked apart the Lady Cavaliers’ attack with four steals, diving to the floor for two of those.
The standout defense of Masingale, who has committed to Wofford, helped McMinn Central score 11 straight points as part of a 16-1 run that sealed a 58-50 victory at Middle Tennessee State University’s Murphy Center, setting up the Chargerettes’ first state final since 2015 and their fifth overall. They’ll try to add a second title to the one they earned in 2011.
Masingale finished with 12 points — she was 9-of-12 on free throws, improving to 44-of-40 this postseason — 10 rebounds, five steals and a block for the Chargerettes (28-7).
“This means so much to our community,” Masingale said. “They have helped us through this whole process and willed us on. They helped us fund this trip. Not only are we playing for ourselves, but our community and little girls that look up to us just like we did several years ago.”