Top-seeded Sunshine beat A.L. Johnson 54-30 Thursday to move to the finals of the AHSAA Class 1A, Area 5 tournament.

The underdog Eagles kept the game close early, heading to the locker room at halftime down only 27-21.

“We shot bad,” Sunshine head coach Phillip Wagner said. “But I told the team earlier this week in practice that they would play like they practice.”

Sunshine matched is offensive output in the second half, but clamped down on the defensive end.

“We went to what we call a 3-2 trap,” Wagner said. “I told them we were going to have to step up the defense if we planned to win the area and get to Montgomery.”

Shafontaye Myers led the way for Sunshine, scoring 28 points while grabbing 13 rebounds. She also finished the night with seven steals and three assists. Deborah Lewis provided 12 points for the Lady Tigers.

Ashley Edwards finished with 18 points for A.L. Johnson.

The win clinched Sunshine a spot in next week’s sub-regional round. SHS returns to action Saturday night when it faces Linden in the finals of the area tournament. That game is scheduled to tip off at 6 p.m.