The WA Girls’ Basketball team secured a senior night victory against Waltham High School on Thursday, Feb. 13, making their overall season record 15-3 and also crowning them undefeated Dual County League (DCL) champions with a record of 10-0.
WA gained first possession after winning the tip off, which allowed them to move swiftly down the court and get the ball to senior captain Erin Keefe who scored the first points of the game with a three pointer. However, after a few switches in possession, Waltham was able to tie the game. The next points up on the board for both teams were three pointers yet again; keeping the game tied 6-6.
“It took us a quarter to get used to [Waltham’s] defense which we don’t usually play against,” sophomore Alexa Coward said. “Being able to adjust led us to being able to pull away later in the game.”
WA took a timeout with a little less than three minutes left in the first quarter. Once they were back out on the court, Waltham quickly scored again, moving the score to 8-6 with WA trailing behind. However, Waltham was not in the lead for long before an impressive three pointer by Coward; sending WA to a one point lead. Much of the rest of the first quarter was a struggle for possession between both teams, but before the buzzer, senior captain Faith Williams upped WA’s score with a three pointer. Leaving the first quarter with a score of 12-8 in favor of WA.
Heading into the second quarter, skilled defense was shown by both teams until junior Olivia Pillsbury heightened WA’s lead with a layup, bringing the score to 14-8. WA continued to fight for possession as Waltham made a basket. Nevertheless, WA’s movement of the ball created another three pointer opportunity that Coward took with less than five minutes left on the clock. Less than a minute later, she maneuvered her way back to a perfect position that secured the team another three pointer; putting WA farther in the lead with a score of 20-10.
For the rest of the second quarter, Waltham fought to get back in the lead. However, Waltham’s defense was no match for WA’s intense offense as multiple baskets were made in the last few minutes of the quarter. Nevertheless, even with WA’s smart plays on offense, Waltham was still able to sneak in and steal the ball a few times, ending the second quarter with a score of 32-17.
“Offensively we knocked down a good amount of shots since they were playing in a zone defense for a lot of the game,” Keefe said. “I think overall we adjusted well offensively to their defense.”
Within the third quarter, Waltham fouled WA a total of four times, increasing WA’s lead even more. Junior Hannah Lupien was able to fight for possession and create impressive turnovers that led to key plays on WA’s end which helped up their lead. WA’s offense took down Waltham’s zone defense in this quarter which gave junior Kaitlyn Pepin multiple successfully executed layup opportunities. The game was looking good for WA as the third quarter ended with a score of 47-29.
The fourth and final quarter of the game was engaging to watch, as both teams maneuvered the ball around the court and created key plays that upped both of their scores. However, Waltham’s offense was no match for WA’s defense as multiple steals and blocks happened throughout the quarter. An impressive block by WA led to a turnover which created space for senior captain Diya Jayaraman to shoot a nothing but net three pointer. The game ended with junior Maddie Smith stealing the ball from Waltham and ending the game with a score of 61-36.
“We owed it to our seniors to give them the best senior night and prove that the losses we suffered as a young team the last few years meant something as we built ourselves up,” Pepin said.
The girls are playing in a tournament this week and their next game will be on Wednesday Feb. 19 hosted by Mansfield High School where they will be competing against Natick High School.
