AHOSKIE – A season that exceeded all expectations came to a close here Wednesday night.

Wilson’s R.L. Fike High School knocked off the Hertford County High School varsity girls 54-35 to eliminate the Lady Bears from the North Carolina High School Athletic Association 3-A playoffs.

The Lady Demons put four players in double figures with Aquila Drake and Ciara Perry leading the way with a dozen points each. Briante Bond led Hertford County with 12 as well.

Fike wasted little time taking control of the contest, scoring eight of the first 10 points with Drake and Jameka Thompson scoring four each in the early going stopped only by a Bond bucket for HCHS.

Bond stopped the spurt with another hoop that closed the gap to 8-4, but Fike scored the next 10 unanswered.

Perry had a pair of three-pointers on the run while Drake and Meredith Pruden each added a hoop to give the visitors an 18-4 advantage.

Brandi Burden interrupted the streak with a free throw for HCHS, but Jaleesa Harper and Pruden hit successive hoops to push Fike’s lead to 22-5.

Burden scored again for HCHS only to see Harper answer with a triple for the Lady Demons. A Camaryn Jones free throw to HCHS within 25-8 at the end of the first quarter.

Fike continued to pull away as the second quarter opened, scoring the first seven points thanks in part to hoops by Drake and Perry. That pushed their lead to 32-8.

Bond and Sherniece Futrell sandwiched free throws around a Jones hoop for Hertford County to close within 32-22.

The Demons scored six of the final eight points as Fike went into the locker room with a 36-14 lead.

Hertford County got a hoop from Jaleesa Chinn to open the third quarter and Burden followed with a free throw to close within 36-18. From there, the two teams exchanged scores throughout the period with the Lady Bears ending the quarter down 46-28.

Jones and Takia Williams hit back-to-back buckets to open the fourth quarter to close the gap to 46-32, but Fike scored three in a row to push back ahead 52-32.

Chinn closed out her career with a three-pointer late in the period and Jaleesa Harper scored for Fike to close out the scoring.

Hertford County finished the season 15-7.