One special trait Lawrence Central's girls basketball team has crafted over the course of this season has been the ability to step on the accelerator.

It has served the top-ranked team in Class 4A well, as evidenced by its 53-40 victory over second-ranked Center Grove in the championship game of the Southport Semistate on Saturday.

In both the title clash and in the morning semifinal (a 48-34 triumph over Plainfield), coach Jannon Lampley’s squad overcame a nine-point deficit (ironically, trailing by a 24-15 score in both games) to claim the program’s first semistate title.

Along with that comes a berth in the state championship game against Lake Central at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Saturday night.

“These girls have been tough all year,” Lampley said of her squad, now 29-1 — losing only to a Kentucky school. “We’ve learned how to score in bunches and to get stops in bunches. These girls know how to pace themselves and when to press the pedal.”

Against Center Grove, that time came midway through the third quarter when the Trojans broke from a 13-13 tie at halftime with a 11-2 run to open the quarter. Senior guard Audrey Annee capped CG’s spurt with a 3-pointer with 4:57 left in the third for that 24-15 lead.

From there, the LC duo of Jaylah Lampley and Laila Abdurraqib took over. They evenly split the first eight points of a 10-0 spurt that allowed the Bears to pull even at 26-26. Lola Lampley added the final two points of the run to give LC its first lead since early in the second quarter.

Center Grove (27-2) reclaimed the lead, 29-28, on a 3-pointer by Annee just before the third quarter buzzer, but Abdurraqib stepped to the fore in the final quarter.

The 5-7 junior scored 14 of her game-high 22 points during the final eight minutes as the Bears built their lead all the way to the finish. Abdurraqib finished 14-of-16 from the free throw line and also led LC with six rebounds.

“Our ability to defend and rebound has been a strength all season,” coach Lampley said. “We rode (Abdurraqib’s) wave. She got our players going and momentum shifted to our side.”

“I just want to win,” Abdurraqib said of her effort. “All year, we’ve wanted to make history and our coaches push us, our fans making the drive here push us and we (players) push each other.”

“Credit Lawrence Central,” Center Grove coach Kevin Stuckmeyer said. “They are very athletic and Abdurraqib is quite a player. They took the lead and made the plays down the stretch when it mattered.”

The Trojans finished with 17 turnovers, while LC committed only seven. Also, thanks largely to Abdurraqib’s effort, the Bears were 16-of-23 from the free throw line, while Center Grove hit only 3-of-6.

Jaylah Lampley added 16 points and five rebounds for the winners.

Aubrie Booker led Center Grove with 10 points and five rebounds, while the trio of Annee, Ava Grant and Lilly Bischoff each scored eight points.

LAWRENCE CENTRAL 53, CENTER GROVE 40

LAWRENCE CENTRAL (53): Katie Castro 0 1-2 1; Lola Lampley 4 1-2 9; Mariah Kenter-Garrett 1 0-0 2; Jayla Lampley 6 2-3 15; Aniyah McKenzie 1 0-0 2; Laila Abdurraqib 4 14-16 22; Melaya Hughes 1 0-0 2. TOTALS: 17 18-23 53.

CENTER GROVE (40): Audrey Annee 3 0-1 8; Aubrie Booker 3 3-5 10; Hannah Gin 0 0-0 0; Ava Grant 3 0-0 8; Lilly Bischoff 3 0-0 8; Rachel Wirts 3 0-0 6. TOTALS: 15 3-6 40.

Lawrence Central             6             7             15           25 -- 53

Center Grove      4             9             16           11 -- 40

Three-point baskets: Lawrence Central 1 (J. Lampley), Center Grove 7 (Annee 2, Booker, Grant 2, Bischoff 2); Total fouls (fouled out): Lawrence Central 15 (none), Center Grove 20 (Gin); Records: Lawrence Central 29-1; Center Grove finishes 27-2.

SEMIFINALS

LAWRENCE CENTRAL 48, PLAINFIELD 34

LAWRENCE CENTRAL (48): Lola Lampley 0 3-4 3; Mariah Kenter Garrett 2 0-0 4; Melaya Hughes 1 0-0 2; Laylah Lampley 3 0-0 6; Laila Abdurraqib 4 5-9 15; Aniyah McKenzie 8 2-4 18. TOTALS: 18 10-17 48.

PLAINFIELD (34): Berkeley Williams 4 2-4 12; Morgan Barnes 1 0-0 3; Hannah Menser 4 0-0 10; Payton Benge 3 3-4 9. TOTALS: 12 5-8 34.

Lawrence Central             5             12           20           11 – 48

Plainfield             11           13           7             3 – 34

Three-point baskets: Lawrence Central 2 (Abdurraqib 2), Plainfield 5 (Williams 2, Barnes, Menser 2); Total fouls: Lawrence Central 10, Plainfield 14; Records: Plainfield finishes 18-8.

CENTER GROVE 45, FRANKLIN 33

CENTER GROVE (45): Audrey Annee 1 0-0 3; Aubrie Booker 3 2-2 8; Ava Grant 5 3-4 14; Lilly Bischoff 3 6-8 12; Rachel Wirts 4 0-0 8. TOTALS 16 11-14 45.

FRANKLIN (33): Aubrey Runyon 0 2-2 2; Lauren Klem 2 0-0 5; Scarlett Kimbrell 6 0-0 16; Erica Buening 2 1-2 6; Emma Sappenfield 2 0-0 4; Brooklyn York 0 0-0 0. TOTALS: 12 3-4 33.

Center Grove      9             14           13           9 -- 45

Franklin 10           6             11           6 -- 33

Three-point baskets: Center Grove 2 (Annee, Grant), Franklin 6 (Klem, Kimbrell 4, Buening); Total fouls (fouled out): Center Grove 10 (none), Franklin 16 (Buening, York). Records: Franklin finishes 24-4.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indiana girls high school basketball: Lawrence Central headed to state