Ashley Hampton leads St. John to the Final Four

Photo: Ashley Hampton blasted Merritt Island Christian with 29 points and 17 rebounds to move her team to the final four in Class 1A.

OCALA - The Ashley Hampton Express is headed to Lakeland.

The St. John forward and Florida A&M University Lady Rattlers basketball signee continued her postseason onslaught, hanging 29 points and 17 rebounds on second-ranked Merritt Island Christian Saturday night, and moving the Lady Saints into their first-ever Class 1A final four.

Sixth-ranked St. John (22-5) sprinted out to an 11-0 lead and cruised to the 57-45 victory in the 1A-2 region finals. "We're going to state," Hampton said after her fifth straight postseason double-double. "I'm unexplainable excited right now. "For three years we've been getting to the same point . . . but now we've got the determination and the drive, and the chemistry - it always goes back to the chemistry - we're just really lucky to have that."

St. John head coach Kim Pompey-Bell, who also happens to be Hampton's mother, couldn't hide her pride after leading the Saints to the final four in just her second season at the helm.

"It's amazing to watch (Ashley)," Pompey-Bell said. "I've taught her since she was 3-4 years old, so to see her grow and prosper and develop. She's amazing. And she gets better and better every game." "But it's a team effort. (Ashley's) got her talents and so do the other girls. Without the rest of them, she wouldn't be where she is now."

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Kim Pompey-Bell in her prep days was a basketball superstar at Vanguard High School, Ocala and at Division I, University of South Alabama, where she still holds the school record for 3-point shots made. In this case, the apple didn't fall too far from the tree for this blue chip student-athlete carrying a 4.42 grade point average.

FAMU recruit leads team to Regional 1A Finals

Photo: Florida A&M University basketball signee Ashley Hampton (#4), a 5-9 senior guard, St. John's Lutheran has taken the Saints on her back and averaged 30 points and 19 rebounds throughout the regional playoffs. Hampton has maintained a 4.42 grade point average while being the top player in Marion County, Florida in Basketball and Volleyball.

ONLY ONE WIN FROM FINAL FOUR

Region 1A-2

No. 2 MERRITT ISLAND CHRISTIAN (19-2) AT No. 6 ST. JOHN (21-5)

When: Tonight, 7 p.m.

Winner gets: The winner between Seffner Christian (15-10) and Sarasota Christian (23-5) in the Class 1A state semifinals next Wednesday at the Lakeland Center.

How they got here: Merritt Island Christian got past Central Florida Christian 56-45 and followed it up with a 51-44 over Foundation Academy; St. John downed Geneva 59-39and won on the road at Lake Mary Prep 58-52.

Notes: The Saints finally slammed the door on the regional semifinal round after three consecutive losses and look to get past the Cougars, who were winless in their previous five playoff outings before this season. Merritt Island Christian's only losses were against Circle Christian (56-50) and Heartland Christian (61-50) and hasn't lost since Jan. 25.

St. John has been hot of late as well thanks to the play of Florida A&M University Lady Rattlers signee Ashley Hampton, who has averaged 30 points and 19 rebounds in the regional tournament.

Hampton's finest hour came in Tuesday's regional semis against Lake Mary Prep, as she scored 31 points and grabbed 21 rebounds to help the foul-plagued Saints to the huge road win. Alexis Samuel and Amy Ergle have also had solid postseason efforts, while the rest of the supporting cast has stepped up when needed.

St. John, which has made the regional playoffs in six of the past seven seasons and 12 of the last 15 overall, last made the regional finals in 2002 when it lost to Gainesville Oak Hall. Merritt Island Christian, playing in its first regional final, won its first district title since 1999 and dominated its opponents by an average margin of victory of 31.5, but has come back to the pack in the regional round.