By Bret Strelow

Salisbury Post

SPENCER — North Rowan’s post players are accustomed to practicing against Mike White, their 6-foot-6 head coach.

The size of South Rowan’s frontline still made an impression.

Shemieka Brown scored 22 points, Sierra Ingram had a double-double with 17 points and 13 rebounds, and Shavonna Casey contributed 11 rebounds to help North earn a 60-51 victory against visiting South on Monday.

An ankle injury limited the effectiveness of South center Katie Wise, but Katherine Van Wieren (22 points) and Taylor May (18 points) both matched their career-high totals.

The Cavaliers (8-1) led 37-22 midway through the third quarter but entered the fourth with a 39-37 edge.

“What we tried to do was bang on their kids down low,” South coach Jim Brooks said. “Their kids do an excellent job of getting positioning, and they were doing it by staying low and moving. What we wanted our big girls to do was, when they bang us, you bang them. Make it a fight down there. I’m pretty sure both ways some girls are going to be sore.

“When we made the run, we went at them as hard as they went at us. Hats off to their kids — they go hard.”

South (5-4) actually pulled within 55-51 on Van Wieren’s two free throws with 16 seconds left, but Brown scored the game’s final five points.

Van Wieren and May combined for 16 points in the third quarter and accounted for 14 in the 15-2 run that covered the final four minutes of the period.

North went 12-for-18 from the line in the fourth quarter, including 8-for-10 in the first four minutes. Ingram said rebounding also helped the Cavaliers reclaim control.

“They were big,” she said. “Very big. Very, very big. Bigger than me. Bigger than Quon (Cuthbertson), and bigger than Shavonna.”

Casey grabbed seven rebounds in the final quarter, and Ingram finished with 12 offensive boards. Cuthbertson totalled seven rebounds.

Ingram scored most of her points on putbacks, and that means White’s practice work is paying off.

“I make them shoot over me, push them around, maybe tap them on the elbow to get them to concentrate on going up strong and shooting soft,” he said. “Sometimes they try to throw me to the floor, but they can’t do it.”

White admitted that he feels sore after some intense sessions.

North finished with a rebounding advantage against South, but Ingram said the post players don’t fare as well against their coach.

“There’s no chance,” Ingram said.

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NOTES: Van Wieren scored 22 points against North Davidson last season, and May had 18 in a recent win against Mooresville. … Wise blocked four shots in the first quarter. … North’s JaQuanta Wilks opened the fourth quarter with a 3-pointer, and a jumper from Jasmine Rice gave the Cavs a 52-45 lead with 4:02 remaining.

SOUTH ROWAN (51) — Van Wieren 22, May 18, Wilson 5, Houston 3, Wise 2, Haywood 1, K.Brown, Morton, Garrett.

NORTH ROWAN (60) — S.Brown 22, Ingram 17, Wilks 8, Casey 6, Cuthbertson 5, Rice 2, Parker, Turner, Bethea, Propst.

South Rowan 10 8 19 14 — 51

North Rowan 13 18 8 21 — 60

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Contact Bret Strelow at 704-797-4258 or bstrelow@salisburypost.com.