Fort Walton Beach and Niceville advance to the Sweet 16, while Destin, Rocky Bayou and Laurel Hill see their seasons come to a close in the opening round of the state playoffs.

Fort Walton Beach 68, Paxon 20

Friday night’s blowout was the kind of performance that has defined the Lady Vikings’ season.

Behind strong efforts from Alexis Smith and Aniyah Boyd, Fort Walton Beach opened on a 15-3 run and never looked back. The Lady Vikings led 22-10 after the first quarter, 40-16 at halftime and 58-20 heading into the fourth. By then, coach Mercedez Claybrone had emptied her bench and the game was at running clock.

• Fort Walton Beach held Paxon scoreless in the fourth quarter.

Claybrone and her players believe the dominant showing could carry into the next round.

“Just for them to see how hard they work in practice all week, just to see it carry over, just to see it all translate over is rewarding,” Claybrone said.

“I feel like it’s a great start for the playoffs, but next week we’ve got to do better,” Smith added.

“It just gives us all the positive intensity to keep going,” Boyd said.

Fort Walton Beach will host Rickards in the Sweet 16 this Friday. Rickards recently beat Menendez 55-39. The two teams have already met twice this season — the first a 21-point victory for Fort Walton Beach, the second a five-point win for Rickards.

• “We’re super excited. It’s the matchup the girls wanted,” Claybrone said. “We came back, we dissected a ton of film, and they saw some things they think they could’ve done better. I think we’ve gotten better from that game.”

“We lost to them about a month ago, so we’ve got to push harder and get the win,” Smith said.

“We just have to stay together as a team,” Boyd added.

Niceville 71, Forest 58

Niceville controlled the game from start to finish Friday night, advancing to the Sweet 16 with a 71-58 victory over Forest.

• The Lady Eagles opened on a 7-0 run, with Carson Fayard scoring five of the first seven points. Forest clawed back to within one possession, but Audrina Nelson and Mariah Heron took over the rest of the first quarter to push Niceville’s lead to 24-14.

Fayard and Nelson connected on threes in the second quarter to extend the advantage to 39-24 before Fayard suffered an injury scare and missed the remainder of the half. The injury quickly proved to not be serious, but Forest seized the momentum with a 12-5 run to cut the deficit to single digits heading into halftime at 44-36.

Forest opened the second half with a bucket to trim the lead to six, but Fayard answered with a 3-pointer to push Niceville back into double digits. The Lady Wildcats cut the lead to single digits again, but a 16-4 Niceville run to close the third quarter put the game out of reach.

The win sends Niceville to the Sweet 16 for the third straight year, a reflection of the work coach Meghan Darhower has done in building the program. But Darhower is quick to give credit to her seniors.

• “I think the seniors that have been a part of the program for four years have changed the culture, and I’m not going to take any credit for that — that’s on them,” Darhower said. “They set a standard, and they uphold that standard every day.”

Those seniors walked into a program that had gone 6-18, had a combined 11 wins over the previous two years and carried an 18-game losing streak against in-county rivals. Now, Niceville boasts three straight Sweet 16 appearances and two trips to the Elite Eight, with potentially more to come.

The victory also tested the Lady Eagles’ resilience as the team rallied around Fayard after her injury.

“We’re here for each other. We’re going to play for each other. We’ve been doing that the past few weeks,” Darhower said.

“They are ready to fight and ready to win,” Fayard added.

With Bartram Trail’s 48-44 upset over Navarre, Niceville will host the Bears — rather than face a district championship rematch with the Raiders — in the Sweet 16 this Friday.

“It’s just another game. Both teams are 0-0. It’s win or go home,” Darhower said.

• “I’m happy it’s a home game. We’re going to come out and fight — whether it’s Navarre or Bartram Trail, we’ll be ready. We got them both,” Fayard said.

Providence School 66, Destin 35

A remarkable and historic season for Destin came to an end Friday night as Providence School pulled away for a 66-35 victory.

The Lady Sharks fell behind 21-9 after the first quarter and never recovered as the Lady Stallions cruised to the blowout win. Providence School will host Bishop Snyder in the Sweet 16 this Friday. Bishop Snyder recently beat Trinity Catholic 60-46.

Despite the loss, Destin made history this season as the first team in school history to make the state playoffs in any sport. The Lady Sharks will lose only two seniors in Bailey Gaffney and Evie Gherdovich but return the majority of their core next year, including Neilya Stewart, Kaylee Kaiser and Angel Wilson.

San Jose Prep 74, Rocky Bayou 25

Rocky Bayou’s season ended in the opening round as San Jose Prep pulled away for a 74-25 victory.

After a tight first quarter, San Jose Prep outscored the Lady Knights 17-3 in the second to take a 35-12 halftime lead. The Lady Storm continued their dominance in the second half, holding Rocky Bayou scoreless in the fourth quarter.

San Jose Prep will host The First Academy in the Sweet 16 this Friday. The First Academy recently beat The Master’s Academy 47-21.

Rocky Bayou will lose only one senior in Sarai Alma Novoa Romero. The majority of the team’s core, anchored by Selah Gayle, is expected to return next year.

Jay 55, Laurel Hill 36

Laurel Hill’s season came to a close with a 55-36 loss to Jay on Friday night.

Jay will host Chipley for the right to advance to the Final Four this Friday. Chipley recently beat Paxton 46-39.

Laurel Hill will lose Aiyana Dixon and Ariana Henry but returns a young core anchored by Savannah Riley and Hazel Spicer.