The Sampson County All-Stars 15 and under team may have gone into the Amateur Athletic Union’s national championship this weekend as the underdogs, but, according to coach Dwight Miller, they rose to the challenge and walked away with much more than a fifth place rank.

The weekend started for the All-Stars on Friday, July 24, when they took on the St. Mary’s Panthers from Maryland.

The 9 a.m. game was the All-Stars first victory, sweeping the Panthers 68-56.

With a win under their belts, the All-Stars prepared for their second game, which was also held Friday, July 24, at 5:20 p.m.

The All-Stars were matched up against the Lightning from New York and rose to the challenge, beating them by almost 20 points.

With the score 75-54, Miller commented late last week that the entire team was playing their best. He added that the entire team spent time on the court this past weekend.

Saturday morning the All-Stars took on U Turn out of Virginia, and according to Miller the All-Stars came out on top again beating U Turn by 18 points.

The final score was 62-44, All Stars.

As for leading players this weekend, Miller commented that James Miller, Naquan Smith Trashawn Raynor, Connor Bullet and Mark Schmitt all averaged anywhere from 8 to 22 points per game.

Miller: 15-22 points per game; Smith: 12; Raynor: 12; Bullet 10; and Schmitt: 10.

Ryan McLamb was also highlighted by Miller as an assets this past weekend for playing through a knee injury that required medical attention.

According to Miller, McLamb suffered from a bite on his knee, which ended up swelling up to the point where McLamb could not play during the second round of the playoffs.

After seeking medical attention, Miller reported that McLamb was OK and going to the doctor Monday for a check up.

With the win over U Turn, the All-Stars advanced to the first round of the playoffs as a number one seed.

The All Stars first game was slated for Saturday, July 25, and they defeated West Chester, a team out of New York, that night 39-34, which moved the undefeated team to the second round of the state playoffs.

During the matchup against Venom Hall, Miller reported that the All-Stars fell 64-63 with a last second shot, which eliminated them from the tournament.

Although the All Stars were not awarded with a national title, Miller revealed that they did place fifth in the nation, and were highlighted as one of the leading teams in scoring.

“We just had an off day Sunday,” Miller stated.

As for his players, Miller shared, “They did well. I was very proud of them and just getting there was a blessing. At the end of the day, we stopped and ate at the Cracker Barrel and talked about what a great time we had. Of course they were disappointed, but it was a team from North Carolina that ended up winning.”

According to Miller, one of the things that team spoke about was that they were from a small town, which very few people at the tournament had even heard of, and they were able to rise to the challenge and come out on top.

“Our kids were just proud to be competing against teams that have been playing together since they were 8 years old,” Miller said of his team, which was formed two years ago.

As for next season, Miller revealed that the 15 and under team will move up to Division II.

“It is a tougher league, but the entire team agreed that we want to take it a step higher,” Miller concluded.

Jessica Wagner can be contacted at 910-592-8137 ext.122 or reached by e-mail at siphoto@myclintonnc.com.