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Parant, Paige
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MBHS Girls Varsity Basketball team
By Paige Parant, staff writer
Freshman Francie Bodner
On February 8th, the Mountain Brook Girls Varsity Basketball team started their road to competing in the State Tournament.
The Spartans finished their season with an impressive record of (25-8) along with defeating schools from various divisions. During the area tournament, the team beat Homewood 69-54 but lost to Chealsea in the championship with a score of 55-61.
Moving into the regionals, the Spartans faced Minor Highschool and were able to capture a victory with a score of 57-54. The team was able to advance to the State tournament after working hard throughout the previous weeks.
The Spartans played in the Sweet 16 against Oxford and lost 47-60.
“Competitive, gritty and selfless- they work hard and support one another. They finished the season 26-8 ; Ranked #7 in 6a and played in the Sweet 16- a lot to be proud of this season and hopefully a lot to build on for the future,” Head Coach Sara Halasz said.
The team, throughout the season, has faced many challenges as a team and also has had great memories. Sophomore, Merison Kerse said listening to music before games has become a team bonding tradition. “ The team’s bond and hard work [has helped contribute to the team’s success,]” Kerse said. Advancing to the Sweet 16 this year was a major accomplishment for Mountain Brook Girl’s program. In the past years, the team has unfortunately not advanced to the State Tournament during their seasons, making their season very exciting for the program.
“Girls basketball has not made it to the sweet 16 in about eight years. This year has been a huge accomplishment with playing in a Sweet 16 game, being ranked all season and finishing with a strong record,” Coach Halasz added.
She continues and says that this year was different from past years because “These young ladies bought into the culture and held each other accountable. They played together, they supported one another and truly cared about the success of the team/program. We always talked about how you are only as strong as the person sitting next to you. Each day they competed, they were gritty and they were selfless.”
The players worked together throughout the tournament to keep advancing until the Sweet 16. The team spent countless hours inside and outside the gym preparing for the State Tournament.
Halasz says “Throughout the season we prepared as much as we could to be able to get the chance to play in an awesome atmosphere at JSU. The whole season you make adjustments, you tweak things, you scout and you learn from your wins as well as your losses.”
Coach Halasz also says that even though “We [the team] fell short this year, playing in the sweet 16 was a great experience for these young ladies and I know we have our expectations set for next season with what we want to accomplish and build on.”
After coaching an impressive season, Halasz exclaims she is excited for the next season.
“I know it has been a long time since a Mountain Brook girls basketball team has been ranked in the polls. This season has become a stepping stone for what we want to accomplish in the future and where we want to take this program. We are looking to grow and to continue to get better- building off of this season,” Coach Halasz added.