Glen Burnie ends No. 7 Old Mill’s reign in Anne Arundel County girls basketball, wins first championship; Porter scores 27 (VIDEO HERE!)
2021-22 ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY GIRLS BASKETBALL CHAMPIONS
2021-22 ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY GIRLS BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSGLEN BURNIE GOPHERS
by Trevor Colgan
Special to VSN
Amourie Porter drove to the basket and put up a shot. The ball fell through the cylinder, and the whistle blew.
And one.
As the Glen Burnie High faithful inside South River’s gym went crazy, Porter turned toward the Gophers’ bench and let out a celebratory yell.
Porter’s three-point play was the cap on her team’s dominating performance Saturday night. The cap on No. 6 Glen Burnie’s 68-50 win over seventh-ranked Old Mill.
The cap on a historic run of perfection to the Anne Arundel County girls basketball championship.
“We were just picking at them, picking at them,” Porter said. “I just let it out.”
Porter had a game-high 27 points as Glen Burnie (19-0 overall) continued its magical run. It’s the Gophers’ first county girls basketball championship.
Glen Burnie coach Samuel Porter was proud of his team, but knows the job isn’t finished.
“This is finished,” Samuel Porter said. “They’ll enjoy it for a day and after that, we’re right back to the drawing board to prepare for playoffs.”
Glen Burnie completed arguably its finest regular season with a three-game sweep of the Patriots, who’ve been standard in Anne Arundel County for nearly a decade.
The Gophers led by nine (18-9) after the opening quarter and pushed the lead into double-digit in the second before Old Mill, thanks to two 3-pointers from Nevaeh Brown, pulled to 32-29 at halftime.
The lead was one after two free throws from Patriots star post Amani Watts, but with about five minutes left in the third, Glen Burnie found its game.
Porter started with a layup, then Lania Nick drove the lane and scored. Sophomore guard Cincear Parker dropped a deep 3-pointer, and the Gophers put together a decisive 21-5 run for a 51-36 advantage entering the fourth.
“We know we can do it,” Amourie Porter said. “When you know, personally, that your team can accomplish these types of big goals, then you’re unstoppable.”
Until Saturday, Old Mill (15-3) firmly wore the Anne Arundel title crown, winning the past six. The Patriots were poised to take the lead early in the second half Satrrday, but an offensive charge call followed by Glen Burnie’s surge, left the Millersville school in shock.
“Unfortunately, our girls, we didn’t recover,” Patriots coach Henry Fuller said. “I’m not going to make any excuses.”
Glen Burnie raised a few eyebrows when it defeated Old Mill in mid-January at home. The Gophers went to Millersville a couple of weeks and collected another win going away.
Saturday, they may have silenced any lingering doubters. The Gophers are brimming with confidence heading into the state postseason.
Glen Burnie last reached the state Final Four in 1983.
Samuel Porter said Saturday’s league championship is a stepping stone for the Baltimore-Annapolis Boulevard school.
“It starts with us,” Samuel Porter said. “We’re in a position where we can do that. We’re the bridge builders. We can change things.”
Anne Arundel County basketball championship
at South River
No. 6 Glen Burnie 68, No. 7 Old Mill 50
Old Mill – Nevaeh Brown 6, Jemirah Brown 8, NyAsia Futrell 3, Nekyla Nkele-Mzal 8, Amaya Douglas 12, Amani Watts 11, Saniya Hymes 1. Totals 16 14-24 50.
Glen Burnie – Parker 20, Amourie Porter 27, Nick 11, Aichatta Soumaero 2, Tramarie Mobrey 6, Layla Washington 2. Totals 23 17-20 68.
Old Mill 9 20 7 14 – 50
Glen Burnie 18 14 19 17 – 68
