APEX - The Cougars celebrated Senior Night on Friday, but it was sophomore Joelle Deese who came off the bench to lead the Apex girls past Middle Creek 62-50 and propel the Cougars to a spot in the upcoming NCHSAA state playoffs.

Deese finished with 20 points and helped Apex go on an 8-0 run to start the final quarter and turn a one-point lead into a commanding one. The sophomore guard scored and assisted twice in that span, as Apex built the lead to 45-36 and never looked back.

The win secured Apex the fifth spot from the Tri-Nine Conference. The Cougars (7-14 overall, 6-10 conference) swept the Mustangs (12-12, 6-10), who will have to win the conference tournament next week or be earn a wild-card spot in the NCHSAA playoffs.

“It’s unfathomable how excited I am,” said Deese, who scored 12 of her 20 in the fourth quarter. “Honestly it was everyone on this team coming together that made this even possible.”

Apex first-year head coach Jay Huffman was proud of his young team and said they shocked a number of people, including himself.

“This is a big accomplishment for this group to make the state playoffs,” Huffman said. “Two months ago if someone asked, we’d have probably said no, but these girls are the ones who deserve all the credit. Free throws had been a problem for us this year, but not tonight. We told them to leave everything on the court and they made the plays.”

Apex sank 28 of 39 from the charity stripe, while Middle Creek was just 10 of 19.

“The fourth quarter killed us,” said Middle Creek head coach Wes Petty. “It’s disappointing, we felt like we had a great chance coming in but Apex outplayed us and made their shots.”

The Cougars nailed five 3-pointers in the first half but only led 22-20 at intermission. Mustang forwards Vanessa Pitts (14 points) and senior Mary Johnston (11) used their size advantage and senior Jasmine Shaw got them the ball to keep Middle Creek close for three quarters.

Aliya Ruffin, another Cougar sophomore, poured in 15 points, while Sami Curcuro (11) and Emily Sasser (9) also contributed. Apex senior forward Ali Hinton was honored before the game.

The Cougars will be the fifth seed in next week’s Tri-Nine tourney and will play at No. 4 Cary on Tuesday. Middle Creek will need to beat Panther Creek to have a chance to qualify for the state playoffs.

“Congratulations to Apex and the job Jay (Huffman) did with them this year,” Petty said. “We have an outside shot at a wildcard, just have to hope.”