Leo Torres
Gadsden County News Service
Crossroad Academy secured its fifth straight district championship Saturday, defeating Port St. Joe 53-47 in front of the Scorpion home crowd.
It was also the sixth win in a row for the Scorpions (17-3), who will host the first round of playoffs next week as a result of its victory. It is highly likely Crossroad will see Port St. Joe (25-1) again in the playoffs should both win out.
Athletic Director Roy Howard expressed excitement after the game.
“This is overwhelming. I’m so excited for our kids,” Howard said. “I’m so excited for our community, our program. To win here, in a new gym, a new facility — it means a lot.”
The Scorpion den was at full capacity during the game, and the Sharks felt the pressure, going down as much as 16 at one point. Port St. Joe was able to cut the lead down in the third quarter after taking advantage of turnovers, but the defensive prowess of Crossroad proved too much to overcome in the end.
Senior Jabari Boahen, who is averaging 13.1 points for the Scorpions, led the team offensively and gave the Sharks problems with his elusiveness. Boahen credited the team’s unity for helping them weather their opponent’s late burst.
“I had to bring us together as a leader,” he said. “We stayed together and we got the win.”
Howard said the bar is high for this unit, but he said their ultimate goal is yet to come.
“Our goal is to get to state and win state. That’s the biggest goal,” he said. “I’m sure the guys are very excited, but we gotta continue to stay locked in, stay poised, and we gotta make sure that we come back out and complete the goal, which is to get on down to Jacksonville.”
