Varsity basketball girls obtain strong victory against Concordia

On November 19, from 4:00 to 5:30 PM, the gym was alive with commotion. The crowd cheered as the varsity basketball girls battled fiercely against one of their longtime rivals, the Concordia Phoenixes. Last season, the Lady Sharks had lost to Concordia during the tournament. In the words of team captain Sophie Chao (12C), “We had high hopes of winning Concordia at the tournament since we already did for the regular season game. [Unfortunately,] we focused too much on trying to win the game when we should’ve been more patient.”

The Sharks performed exceptionally well during the first period, scoring a whopping 22 points against Concordia’s 4 points, starting off the match with a substantial lead. Then for the second period, Concordia upped their defenses, so for almost 2 and a half minutes, both teams were unable to score. The players zoomed from one end of the court to the other, the ball pounding loud and steadily against the ground. That is, until a Shark made a 2 pointer, maintaining SMIC-I’s dominant position while the audienceerupted with whoops and whistles. By the end of the second period, the Lady Sharks still preserved their close to twenty-point lead with a score of 29 points to Concordia’s 10.

The third period was even more awe-inspiring. At around one minute into the game, the Sharks scored first once again. Then, another minute later, Sophie Chao landed two 3 pointers in a row, widening the gap between the two teams’ scores and resulting in the crowd’s uproar. Very soon, the Sharks were in the lead by 30 points; thus, according to the SISAC mercy rule, future points earned will no longer be recorded. The final scoring for the entire match was reached during this third period, SMIC-I earning 42 points compared to Concordia’s 12 points. It was a remarkable feat.

When asked about thoughts on the team’s performance and victory, team captain Sophie Chao expressed, “We did a great job moving the ball around to score, but we still need more practice on defense. We were able to win steadily because of our teamwork and our coach’s guidance.” Meanwhile, head coach Renelle Richmond commented, “I was impressed by Concordia’s defensive intensity, and we always appreciate a hard fought SISAC game.”

Regarding the impact of the game on the team’s future directions, coach Renelle Richmond said, “I’m hoping we can build on the lessons we gained from this game moving forward.” Sophie explained, “[While] suicide [drills] definitely make a team stronger, patience and communication are the keys to winning games. Our goal now is to remember all the plays coach implemented and use them effectively in [future] games. Winning Concordia makes us want more victories so we’ll definitely put in more work.”

Feature ImageSophie Chao (12C) makes a jump shotCourtesy of Benson Lin

By Gracier Dai