LOGANVILLE, Ga. — The Newton Rams advanced to the Region 4-AAAAAAA championship on Monday after defeating the Archer Tigers.

The region tournament was held at Grayson High School.

In Newton’s opening game, late game heroics from the Lady Rams propelled them to a 60-58 win over the No. 2 seed Lady Tigers. In the boys game, Newton pulled away late in the fourth quarter to win 61-56 over Archer.

Lady Rams knock down two buzzer beaters on their way to the win

After trailing for the majority of the contest, the No. 3 seed Lady Rams found themselves in a dog fight late against the Lady Tigers.

After back-to-back scores from Mya Perry and Sanaa Tripp trimmed Archer’s lead down to 45-42, freshman Jamirah Flournoy received the ball in the corner with seconds left.

The freshman knocked down the three pointer to tie the game at 45-45 and send the contest into overtime.

Four minutes later, the Lady Rams found themselves in a similar spot, only this time they were going for the winning shot.

Trailing 58-57, Newton pushed the ball down the court and into the hands of junior Alissa Sandifer, who drained the three pointer for the win.

Sandifer’s shot came from the same spot on the floor where Flournoy had her game-tying shot minutes before.

Following the game, Lady Rams head coach Jawan Bailey spoke about his thought process on the final possession.

“Archer went to their zone. The game plan was to try to get Tripp off as a distraction and hopefully get the side loaded up to where we could get something on the other side for a three-point shot,” Bailey said. “It actually worked out very well for us, we had an open look in the corner. It was to a kid who had not made a shot all game, but she made the one that mattered.”

The contest was tight for the most of the game with Archer maintaining an edge until the final stages.

Tripp led Newton in scoring with 22 points on Monday.

The 60-58 win for the No. 3 seed Lady Rams sets them up with the 26-0 No. 1 Grayson Rams in the region title game on Wednesday, Feb. 14 at 6 p.m. 

Newton boys pull away late to set up another battle with Grayson

The No. 2 seeded Rams defeated the No. 3 seed Archer in the region semi-final despite a late push from the Tigers in the final frame.

Things began in Newton’s favor early as the Tigers struggled to get baskets consistently in the opening frame.

After a buzzer beater from Tim Prather to end the first quarter, the Rams led 21-10.

Once the game entered the third quarter with a 29-19 Newton lead, the contest began to get more competitive.

The Tigers used the free throw line to their advantage as they managed to reduce the Rams lead to 45-41 going into the final frame.

Archer’s momentum carried over into the late stages.

Shortly after the start of the fourth quarter, Archer tied the game at 47-47, marking the first time the two teams were even since the beginning of the contest.

Even with the Tigers surging, Newton’s Tay Jefferies came through with the response.

Jefferies knocked down a three pointer, followed by a fast break score to put the Rams back ahead quickly.

With the Tigers trailing by three in the final minute, Prather knocked down a pair of free throws to put the game out of reach.

The 61-56 win for Newton sets it up with another matchup with the No. 1 seed Grayson, who has come out on the winning end in its two previous contests with the Rams.

The battle of the Rams for the Region 4-AAAAAAA crown will take place at Grayson on Wednesday, Feb. 14 at 7:30 p.m.

This story will be featured as online only. It will not appear in a print edition of The Covington News.