Chasity Melvin Tourney set

Dec. 23—Lakewood High School will be honoring one of the greatest players to ever walk the halls of that institution, Chasity Melvin, with an inaugural tournament named for her.

Her contributions to the community on the court and the community have been enormous. She was instrumental for the 1994 Lady Leopards trek to the state title (their first run) with a win over Murphy Lady Bulldogs, 80-60. She dumped 37 points and pulled in 21 rebounds during the game.

On Dec. 28-29 six teams will compete in the inaugural Chasity Melvin Holiday tournament: Clinton (Boys and Girls), Lakewood (Boys and Girls), South Lenoir (Boys), Topsail (Boys), Heide Trask (Girls) and Wallace-Rose Hill (Girls). The games are scheduled as follows:

Dec. 28

Clinton v Wallace 12 p.m. (G)

Clinton v Topsail 2 p.m. (B)

Lakewood v Heide Trask 4 p.m. (G)

Lakewood v South Lenoir 6 p.m. (B)

"Coach Kerr of the Lady Leopard basketball team has been the integral key in planning and hosting the 1st Annual Holiday Basketball Tournament at Lakewood High School. The tournament provides both the men's and women's programs at Lakewood an opportunity to compete and improve over the Christmas Holiday and it provides entertainment for the supporting community. We would like to thank everyone who volunteered their time to support Lakewood basketball," Coach Brandon Powell stated.

Reach Anthony McConnaughey at amcconnaughey@clintonnc.com, X @SportsSampson and the Sampson Independent Facebook page