It took a dozen straight misses and more than 4 minutes before Park Crossing finally touched the bottom of the net before an avalanche ensued lifting the top-ranked Thunderbirds to a 49-39 victory over Chelsea in Saturday’s Class 6A state championship game at Birmingham’s BJCC’s Legacy Arena.

“It sounds good to me, that’s my first thought,” Park Crossing coach Freeah Smith said. “This group is so amazing and makes my job so easy. I don’t deal with extra things, we focus on basketball and we love on each other. I’m proud of them and grateful to be their coach.”

Tournament most valuable player Saniya Jackson shook off the effects of allergies that saw her visiting a doctor before Saturday’s tip-off to lead her team with a double-double performance. She scored 21 points and grabbed 12 rebounds.

“We planned on just doing us,” Smith said. “Saniya was a little under the weather today – we had a trip to urgent care to get a shot for sinus and allergy stuff – so that took away a little bit of our normal get-and-go. The other girls stepped up and we maintained our game plan.”

Park Crossing finished the season at 34-1 with its only loss coming in Mississippi to Biloxi.

The Thunderbirds endured an opening drought that spanned 4:18, allowing the sixth-ranked Hornets to grab an early 4-0 lead, but Jackson bookended a Chelsea bucket with consecutive 3-pointers, tying the game, and converted a pair of free throws for a 10-8 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Jackson knocked down her third triple on the first series of the second period and a short jumper by Tariah Magee pushed the advantage to 5 points. A layup from Chelsea’s Juliann Bass pulled the Hornets within a bucket, but Jackson threw a no-look, behind-the-back pass to Maliyah Meeks, who scored on an open layup and sparked a 9-0 run to build a double-digit advantage.

Haley Trotter ended a 4:28 scoring drought for the Hornets on a short jumper inside the final minute of the half, but the Thunderbirds carried a 24-14 lead into the intermission.

Chelsea (28-8) scored on its first possession of the second half but allowed the Thunderbirds to surge ahead 29-16 on a 3-pointer by Tariah Magee and a layup from Amy Fall. The Hornets broke a 2:46 drought on a 6-0 run, but Park Crossing closed out the third period with a 35-24 advantage.

Caroline Brown and Trotter combined on a 5-0 run in the final period, cutting the lead to 8 points, but Meeks scored on back-to-back layups, the latter of which came on a steal and fast break to the basket.

“I knew my team needed me to get on the boards and get defensive estops,” Meeks said. “It was a whole team effort, everybody in the right place at the right time and communicating.”

Chelsea trimmed the deficit to single digits one last time with a 9-2 run, capped on a 3-pointer by Olivia Pryor, but Jackson hit consecutive shots before closing out the game with two successful trips to the free-throw line.

“They never laid down,” Smith said. “Normally, we’ll get up on people and they’ll lay down, but Chelsea fought to the end. A lot of credit to the girls and coaches there.”

Star of the Game: Jackson. Along with the senior’s 21 and 12, she had 5 assists and 2 steals.

“My teammates will always have my back and I’ll always have their back,” she said. “The support system I have is great.”

Stat sheet: Park Crossing – Meeks also produced a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds, and Magee had 8 points, 6 rebounds and 3 steals. Fall added 4 points and 2 rebounds, followed by Kamryn Kelly and Marker Collins with 2 points and 2 rebounds each. Chelsea – Trotter had a double-double with 18 points and 13 rebounds and Schwallie finished with 8 points. Olivia Pryor had 4 points, 6 rebounds and 4 steals, Caroline Brown added 5 points and Juliann Bass contributed 4 points and 5 rebounds.

By the numbers: Park Crossing was held to 32.8 percent shooting from the field and 31.3 percent on 3-pointers, but won the rebounding battle 38-31 and produced 20 points off 18 turnovers. Chelsea shot 29.5 percent overall and 18.2 percent from beyond the arc. The Hornets made 11-of-14 at the foul line.

All-Tournament Team: Jackson was named Class 6A tournament MVP and teammates Meeks and Magee were named to the all-tournament team, along with Chelsea’s Trotter and Brown and Hazel Green’s Kristen Johnson.

Did you know? Park Crossing won the first state title in school history in only its 11th season as a program. The Thunderbirds advanced to the state tournament three out of the last four seasons but fell in the semifinals to Huffman and Hazel Green in their previous two trips.

Coachspeak: “What a blessing it is to be a part of these young ladies’ lives. To have them come out and battle and fight in the name of the school and city, it is an honor to be their coach.” – Park Crossing’s Smith

They said it: “It’s been a long time, so we made it our business to bring it back to the city of Montgomery. It feel good to bring it back to the city.” – Meeks

“We earned it. We put in a lot and received a lot. It’s well-deserved.” – Magee