The Bainbridge High girls varsity basketball team was defeated 74-39 in the final home game of the regular season Friday, Feb. 5 by the visiting Bishop Blanchet Braves.
The guests scored first and led throughout the game, which also marked the squad’s Senior Night. Spartan seniors Caroline Lant, Deahna King, Georgia Seltzer, Paulina Bredy and Natalie Beatie, along with their families, were honored by their teammates and coaches before a packed house at Paski Gymnasium.
The Braves’ initial lead was impressive, 24-4 by the end of the first quarter. The Spartans managed a bit of a comeback in the second (19-13), but still trailed 43-17 at the end of the half.
Returning to the court in the third, BHS was again outscored 20-14 and entered the game’s final moments down 63-31.
Defensively, the Spartans held their own in the last quarter and kept the visitors to only 10 points, putting up eight themselves. It was a markedly improved performance, but came too late to turn the tide.
Perpetual points machine Taylor Tye led the BHS squad on the board with 14 — tied with Blanchet’s Jadyn Bush for the game’s leading scorer.
BHS junior Kiera Havill managed nine points, Bredy put up six and Lant finished the night with five.
The loss at home left the BHS team with an overall season record of 5-15 (3-11 in conference) and in the sixth spot in the Metro Mountain Division standings.
Blanchet boasts the top spot with an overall record of 19-1.
The Spartans hosted the first game of the postseason Monday, Feb. 8 — against Nathan Hale — before traveling Tuesday to play against Holy Names Academy.
BHS Head Coach Nicole Hebner praised this year’s crop of seniors, saying that they were more than just dedicated athletes.
“I love this group,” Hebner said. “I think that the energy and the enthusiasm they bring is unbelievable.
“The younger kids really rely on their leadership skills,” she added. “Not only are they good players, but they’re fantastic teammates and we’ll miss them.”
The coach said that the things that will stand out best in her memory about this season in the years to come would be the team’s overall work ethic — and an unfortunately persistent predilection for injuries.
“One thing that I’m going to remember is we couldn’t stay healthy,” she laughed. “Injury and illness has kind of plagued us all year.”
As opposed to some other squads, Hebner said, BHS had no year-round basketball players, which often made consistency — especially early in the year — a challenge, but one that this particular squad had worked hard at all season.
“They fight,” she said. “We don’t have anyone who plays basketball outside the high school season. So for them to come in and fight and not give up, regardless of what our record says, and play through with the criticism that some people are putting out there, that’s what I’ll remember.”
Against Blanchet specifically, Hebner said the team struggled with some of the same old issues: control and focus.
“I think I’ve said it all year long, we have to control the basketball,” she said. “If we cannot control the basketball or we just throw it away and give the other team more possessions, it’s hard on us.”
