The Patriots season came to a wrap after a heartbreaking loss in the second round of the state playoffs. Tears filled the eyes of the players especially the seniors who will never set foot on the court again. “I’m so upset that it had to end this way,” senior forward Shannon Welty said after the loss. “I couldn’t have asked for a better group of teammates during the past four years.”
The girls hit a slump only a few games prior to their first playoff game against Northwest on Feb. 24. The team suffered three consecutive losses in the last three games of the regular season. After a week of nonstop practice, the girls were determined to be all set for the task ahead in the first round of the state playoffs.
After coming off a loss against a talented Whitman team on Feb. 10, the team’s goal was to win the last two games of the regular season to give them the necessary boost to come out strong during playoff time.
Things didn’t go as planned, and when the Patriots traveled to Gaithersburg on Feb. 14 they were bested by the Trojans. The girls were steadily behind on the scoreboard until the final buzzer unable to gain the lead with a score of 47-64.
The usual suspects, senior guard Laura Darby and junior guard Katie Gillick, led the team in points with 22 total combined. “I always want to help the team the best that I can,” Darby said. “It’s too bad it didn’t matter in the end.”
The following game was much different than the previous. On Feb. 17 the girls hosted Sherwood in a thriller, which came down to the wire in the end. The Patriots fought from behind for the majority of the game as they looked to steal the lead from Warriors.
Ultimately the team fell short by only three points but the score doesn’t deny the fact that the Patriots played a great game. Once again Darby remained on top of the scoring with a whopping season high of 33 points.
Senior guard Rachel Peng wasn’t far behind with 16 points. “I definitely think this was a game we could’ve and should’ve won, I’m glad to strongly contribute to the team though,” Peng said.
Overall it was a valiant team effort with multiple points from each player and strong defensive work from the whole team.
After the loss to Sherwood the team was given seven days to practice, watch film or heal up on any injuries a player might have for the big game.
On Feb. 24 the fifth-seed girls hosted sixth-seed Northwest in the first round of the state playoffs.
The girls were behind for the majority of the game, constantly battling to take the lead. The girls were able to bring the game level by the end of the third quarter. It didn’t stop there, and halfway through the fourth quarter the Patriots were able to slide ahead and steal the lead to win the game.
The win was all due to a team effort and three players reached double digits in points.
Junior guard Zoey Goldberg led the team in points, 22 and sophomore forward Crystal Bridge led the team in rebounds with 12
Things didn’t as the girls would’ve liked and on Feb. 27 the team traveled to Gaithersburg once again where they were defeated in the sectional semifinal.
The Patriots were outscored in every quarter by the skillful Trojans, ultimately leading to a score of 41-62.

Alex Bellot

Sports Editor