The St. Louis Surge was one quarter away from winning their third Women’s Blue Chip Basketball League national championship and second in succession.
The Georgia Soul had other ideas.
Trailing by 10 points at the end of three quarters, the Soul staged a remarkable fourth quarter rally to stun the Surge 64-63 and take the WBCBL championship back to Georgia last Sunday in front of a partisan Surge crowd at Fontbonne University.
For three quarters, the Surge’s defense had done a great job of controlling an explosive scoring Soul team in holding them to just 37 points. In the fourth quarter, the Soul erupted for 27 points in an impressive display of poise and offensive execution.
The Soul’s big rally was sparked by its talented backcourt duo of Lacoy Terry and Eboni Fields. Terry scored on a number of penetrating drives to the basket while Fields suddenly got hot from long distance as she made four 3-pointers in the fourth quarter. Forward Khadijiah Cave gave Georgia its only lead of the second half when she made two free throws with 17 seconds left to give the Soul a 64-63 lead.
St. Louis had one last chance to win the game and the championship and it put the ball in the hands of its top player in guard Rebecca Harris. She made a tough drive in the lane and lofted a mid-range jumper that hit the front of the rim. The ball bounced right back to Harris, whose potential game-winning tip-in rolled off the rim as the buzzer sounded, touching off a wild celebration from the Soul players and its small contingent of fans.
Sunday afternoon’s loss spoiled what was otherwise another tremendous season by the Surge, who finished the year with an 11-1 record. They were 10-0 in the regular season and averaged 106 points a game.
In each of the last four seasons, the Surge has played for the WBCBL national championship. They won championships in 2014 and 2016 while finishing as the runners-up in 2015 and 2017.
It was the first time that the WBCBL national tournament was held in St. Louis with big, enthusiastic crowds and exciting games were the order of the weekend. On Saturday, the Surge defeated the Charlotte Invasion 85-79 in another exciting game that went down to the wire.
Rookie forward Kristi Bellock led the Surge with 25 points and 10 rebounds while Harris nearly had a triple-double with 23 points, nine assists and eight rebounds. Center Tori Waldner added 12 points and 11 rebounds.
Other than watching the home team lose the championship in heartbreaking fashion, it was otherwise an excellent weekend of basketball at Fontbonne. The teams and quality of play was top-notch and I was really impressed with the atmosphere in the building. It was electric. Fans of all ages showed up dressed from head to toe in full Surge regalia to cheer their hearts out for two days.
Once again, the St. Louis Surge has proven to be a quality option if you are looking for some sports entertainment during the summer months. As long as owner Khalia Collier is running the operation, this will continue to be the case.
