Newton kept Breanna Richardson and Rockdale at bay long enough to hold on for a win Tuesday night.
The Lady Rams (11-4, 3-1 Region 2-AAAAAA) held Rockdale off in the first half, leading 31-20 after two quarters, but the host team continued to put up a fight.
Rockdale (8-5, 2-1) outscored Newton 19 -7 in the third quarter behind a defense which shut down the Lady Rams.
Entering the third quarter down 31-20, Rockdale scored the quarter's first four points as part of a 10-2 run.
Leading 33-30 Newton called a timeout, and managed a bucket after the break.
However, Rockdale scored the next nine points to take its first lead of the game, 39-35 on Jaycie Williams' 3-pointer with 1:14 left in the period.
Rockdale ended the third quarter up 39-38 and went to its star in the fourth quarter. Richardson finished with 16 points and was 7 of 12 from the free-throw line in the second half.
The Lady Rams went down 41-38 after one of her free throws, but Precious Price hit two charity shots of her own and Shay Lawrence nailed a 3-pointer for a 43-41 advantage.
After the score went back and forth, Lawrence struck again with two free throws for a 47-44 Lady Rams' advantage. Richardson answered with two free throws to tie it at 49 before Newton ended the quarter on a 12-8 run to hold on to the victory.
"We played some good defense, and were able to get the ball in front of us," Newton coach Tiffani Johnson said.
It was the fourth straight win overall for Newton and the second straight against Rockdale, with the last win coming on Jan. 29, 2011.
Newton was led by a season-high 23 points from Price and 12 from Deandre Reed.
The Lady Rams trailed 9-8 before closing out the quarter with five straight points starting with a free throw. Newton opened the second quarter with a 3-pointer by Precious Price for a 16-9 lead.
Newton went up 25-13 after three unanswered buckets, two by Deandre Reed and one by Mercedes Booker, causing a Rockdale time out. The Lady Bulldogs scored five straight after the time out, but Newton finished off the first half on a 6-2 run.
The Lady Rams will continue region play at home against Morrow Friday.
