Girls varsity basketball lost 39-65 against Hayfield Hawks on Thursday, Jan. 25 at their second-to-last game of the season.
The game started off strong with junior shooting guard Abigail Lee knocking down a catch, and shooting three times, but started going downhill soon after.
“Overall, the game was disappointing. It was probably the worst performance of the year, as we really couldn’t get it going offensively, especially in the first quarter,” junior Abigail Lee said.
The Colonials had a rough time as the game went on, especially since junior captain Kaiden Kerkulah was injured, and didn’t get the chance to play this game.
“As a captain, it was so hard to watch and have to sit there. I’m also usually the leading scorer, as well as the starter, so today I was not able to help,” Kerkulah said.
As Kerkulah sat the bench for this one, the rest of the team had to make adjustments.
“I was only able to cheer for my team, so I tried to be extra cheerful. My being out led to others having to step up,” Kerkulah said.
They scored two points in the first quarter, but junior Helena Johnson started to pick it up a little in the second quarter, getting good movement of the ball and allowing them to gain points.
“The second half of our game was definitely an improvement because we had a lot more movement on offense which allowed players like Josie Clayton and Abigail Lee to cut in the middle and get some shots off,” junior Helena Johnson said.
In the second quarter of the game, they brought up their points to 15 by scoring and making plays, but the other team still managed to gain more and was in the lead.
“We need to start working on attacking zone defenses more effectively to create and convert open looks, as well as working on our transition defense,” Lee said.
The players want to shift their defense by changing back and forth between man-to-man and a 1-2-2 zone to shake up the offense.
“Last practice we focused on our press break and defense on the next team we are playing to hopefully win our last games of the season,” Johnson said.
Even though things didn’t go as planned for this game, it’s driving them to win their final game against Falls Church on Feb. 8 to wrap up the season positively.
“Although it was a bad game, it’s a wake up call as to how we need to improve for the second half of the season going into playoffs,” Lee said.
![During a game against Hayfield last year, junior Helena Johnson dribbles across the court. This season, the Jefferson cheer team will be performing courtside at all varsity basketball games. “I didn’t know too much about basketball, but after two games, I caught on,” sophomore cheerleader Caitlyn Wood said. “I think [sideline cheer] is good to have the crowd engaged and keep encouraging the team to do their best.”](https://www.tjtoday.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/basketball.png)
![Team members embrace as they celebrate the seniors on their final game of the season. Senior night is an annual tradition where teams celebrate the final game of the season, saying goodbye to their seniors. “The underclassmen did a fantastic job [planning] and I’m crazy proud of all of them,” senior Riley Cooper said.](https://www.tjtoday.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-25-at-10.12.58-AM-475x312.png)
