Following Northern Virginia Girls High School Basketball

SOUTH COUNTY’S SIMMONS HITS GAME WINNING SHOT AT THE BUZZER TO TOP WEST POTOMAC HIGH SCHOOL

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2/20/25 – After West Potomac’s Olivia Jones made a big 3-pointer to tie the game with just a few seconds remaining, South County sprinted up the court and Savannah Simmons hit a game winning layup as time ran out in this Patriot District semi-final game.

The No.2 seed South County will meet the No. 1 seed Robinson Secondary School, who also won tonight, in the Patriot District finals at 8 pm on Friday, February 21st at South County High School.

The South County High School girls’ basketball team has been red hot this month having recently beaten both West Potomac and Robinson Secondary School, after losing to both of them earlier in the season.

Tonight’s game started with West Potomac coming out strong in the first half. Both Abigail Beddis and Olivia Jones scored 11 points in the half. Delores Harkess and Jill Humphreys each shut down South County’s leading scorer, Laila Tull, on defense in the first half, limiting her to four points. Makyah Mason kept South County close in the first half by scoring 11 points. West Potomac led by nine at halftime.

Although South County’s Tull was quiet in the first half, she came to life in the second half scoring 11 points in the third quarter. On offense, West Potomac seemed confused by South County’s zone defense and struggled to score. West Potomac was outscored 17-8 in the third quarter and South County took a one point lead into the fourth quarter.

The fourth quarter went back and forth but West Potomac found itself with the ball down by 3 points with 15 seconds to go. West Potomac worked the ball around but no one could get open and Jones, who was the pivotal player for her team all night, was forced to throw up an off balance 3-pointer which went through the net with less than ten seconds to go. As the crowd roared, South County sprinted up the court with Natalya Wooten passing to Makyah Mason who found Savannah Simmons under the basket for the game winning shot as time ran out.

South County was led by Tull, 17 points; and both Mason and Simmons had 11 points. West Potomac’s Olivia Jones had 20 points and Beddis had 13 points.