FINAL FOUR

CHARLOTTESVILLE — Madison County advanced to the Group A, Division 2 state semifinals with a 66-57 victory over Northampton, but it wasn’t easy.

For Mountaineers fans, state quarterfinal opponent Northampton was a bit of a mystery. Only a couple of articles about the Eastern Shore District champions were floating around on the Internet and with not even a roster in the VHSL State Championship program, most of the fans at Monticello High School knew little about the Yellow Jackets.

But it didn’t take long for them to send a message to all of the Madison fans in the building, who filled an entire side of the gym less than 20 minutes after the doors opened.

The Yellow Jackets wouldn’t bow out quietly and held the undefeated Mountaineers (28-0) scoreless in the game’s first three minutes. Northampton led 15-12 at the end of the first quarter.

But Madison decided to send a message of its own in the second period. The Mountaineers went on a 14-0 run in the second quarter to take the lead and never let it get back to the Yellow Jackets.

Northampton pushed the tempo from the start, but Madison was able to recover from the slow start and run with the Yellow Jackets.

The Jackets’ big trio of Chris Edwards, Jermaine Smith, and Darius Robinson gave Madison a tough time on defense, especially Robinson who had 11 of the first 15 points for the Jackets and finished with a game-high 27,  nailing six 3-pointers.

Edwards also got hot in the third quarter and finished with 16 points.

But Madison got big games from its trio of junior starts.

Forward Logan Terrell finished with 19 points and 9 rebounds while Bull Run District Player of the Year Jerel Carter had 16 points and 5 rebounds.

The Mountaineers 6-5 center David Falk also played well in the paint with 11 points and 6 rebounds.

The victory sets up a rematch of the Region B championship game. Madison will face Dan River once again in the state semifinals, but this time the winner earns a trip to the championship game and the loser is eliminated.

The Mountaineers and Wildcats will tip-off at 7 p.m. Thursday at the Siegel Center in Richmond.