On Tuesday December 20th, the Westford Academy Varsity Girls’ Basketball team earned a win against the Wayland Knights, 60-34.

The game quickly started in favor of the Ghosts after a two-pointer scored by sophomore Brooke Pillsbury off of a quick pass from junior Emily Bramanti, along with a two-pointer from junior Elizabeth Arnold, both coming in the first minute. Arnold followed up this shot with another basket, this time a three-pointer, which was quickly followed by a two-pointer made by senior captain Angela Alibrandi.

Throughout the course of the first quarter, the Ghosts managed to assert their lead, as well as the strength of their defense, playing mostly on offense and rarely having to defend their basket. At the end of the first quarter, the score was 24-8, with WA taking a fierce lead.

The tone of the game shifted slightly as the second quarter started off with the Ghosts taking a more defensive position against the Knights. Pillsbury scored a two-pointer, followed by Arnold’s second three-pointer of the game.

During a timeout called by Wayland, Bramanti was pulled from the game to ice her shoulder and did not play for the rest of the quarter. The Ghosts could be seen showing their concern for their teammate, but continued to play with vigor, with Brooke Pillsbury performing a layup for two points and later scoring two more points after receiving the ball from senior Amanda Smith.

In a moment of weak defense on behalf of the Ghosts, Wayland was allowed to score two points consecutively. To combat this, in a play containing a series of long passes across the court, Alibrandi, Brooke Pillsbury, and junior Allie Mulhern attempted to score another basket with two seconds left in the quarter, but ran out of time.

At halftime, the score was 34-13, still in the favor of WA.

The crowd, made up of parents, peers, and junior varsity teammates, expressed their joy upon seeing that Bramanti had returned to the court for the third quarter.

The quarter began with a series of foul shots, resulting in two points for Wayland and one for WA, scored by Alibrandi.

The Ghosts began defending their own basket, eventually moving the game back to their offensive side after a clever fake-out carried out by Bramanti.

The Ghost’s defense appeared to be slipping as the third quarter continued, allowing Wayland to score two successive two-pointers. When WA had possession of the ball once again, their lead continued began to climb, with Brooke Pillsbury shooting a successful three-pointer followed by two two-pointers shot by Bramanti and Arnold.

After a defense play carried out by senior Taylor Pillsbury, Bramanti, Alibrandi, Smith, and Mulhern, WA remained in possession of the ball for the rest of the quarter, with Arnold scoring a two-pointer with one second left in the quarter.

The third quarter ended with the Ghosts in the lead, 47-21.

Though the final quarter began with Wayland scoring one point off of foul shots, the Ghosts responded with a two-pointer from sophomore Morgan Rose and one point off of free throws from sophomore Abby Katz.

Rose scored her second two-pointer just minutes later, followed by another two-pointer passed from senior Mara Burke to sophomore Tess Keele.

With thirty seconds left in the game, Sacha Pelosky scored two more points for the team, soliciting a win for WA.

“It’s all in the moment,” said Alibrandi in response to her team’s victory. “It’s a good win.”