It’s hardly to really explain what kind of player Alajiah Ragland is. She’s not really a forward, she’s not really a guard.
“That’s really true, she can stretch defenses where you have to really guard her to 23 or 24 feet and she’s a legit shooting threat from there,” said Charlottesville coach Jim Daly. “But then she scores off the dribble and she’s so unselfish. We have to constantly tell her to look for her shot because she does see the floor so well.”
But classification doesn’t really matter when you produce like Ragland has over the last three years.
The senior scored her 1,000th career point Monday night in the Black Knights’ season opener against Covenant as Charlottesville pulled away for a 70-57 victory over the Eagles. She needed just seven points coming into the game to surpass that mark.
For her part, Ragland was relieved to have the milestone under her belt.
“Finally it’s over, there was so much pressure,” Ragland said. “I don’t have to keep stressing it. I did what I had to do.”
Ragland finished with 15 points against the Eagles, with Destinee McDonald’s 24 points setting the pace for the Black Knights. Charlottesville built a 38-25 lead before the half, and that lead slipped away in part in the third quarter. That lull didn’t go unnoticed by the Black Knights who are bent on pushing the pace and attacking opponents.
“We had a little downfall in the third quarter but we came back,” Ragland said. “We’re in our best mode when we just go.”
With the entire roster back essentially and the addition of Zanequa Thomas who is back after a leg injury kept her out last year, the Black Knights are well-equipped to play that style. Thomas chipped in 12 points in her return to action. Kaniyah Key also finished with eight points. That scoring spread is ideal for the Black Knights.
“There are some thing we need to clean up but overall, the effort, the energy and the tempo is what we’re after,” Daly said. “We’re going to work to try and score 70 each night.”
Covenant, meanwhile, got 31 points out of senior Emily Maupin, a productive performance by the Elon-bound forward. But the Eagles couldn’t hang with Charlottesville’s pace as the Black Knights sped up a more deliberate Covenant squad.
“They were coming in waves and we knew from the beginning that they were going to run, they have a lot of interchangeable parts,” said Covenant coach Rock Watson. “But we have to play our game, we can’t play into their hands, we’re not a running team, we’re not deep.”
Sara Meakem poured in 19 to round out the bulk of the rest of the Eagles’ scoring. Covenant will continue to look for more scoring options beyond that inside-outside tandem. The third quarter certainly gave the Eagles something to build on.
“For a stretch we held them to like six points in the third and then the last minute or so they went on a run,” Watson said. “We still competed we felt like.”
The Black Knights get a week off before returning to action against Orange County next Tuesday while Covenant faces a quick turnaround against Timberlake Christian Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.
