Through the stress of the game, the pressure, the basketballs bouncing faster than the heart rates of the players, everything ends with the grainy sound of a buzzer, indicating the end of game. No matter the effort, sweat, highs and lows, all that will be remembered is the final score, the win or loss.

Varsity girls’ basketball suffered an emotional loss against Fort Zumwalt South on Tuesday, Dec. 13th, with the ending score

being only 51-49. The game stayed extremely close all throughout and the final buzzer indicated the end of the game right as the players gained possession of the ball, hoping to gain a final point to tie up the score. Senior Maria Trupiano describes the impact of the game.

“It was definitely a tough loss since it was a difficult team, but we still felt like we could’ve won,” Trupiano said. “This game as a whole just showed everyone that we still need to grow as a team and get used to the new season and players.”

Though an emotional loss, the team has grown stronger by seeing certain areas they need to improve on their plays and drills, the most keen eye being Head Coach, Hayley Leake, who has taken this game as an opportunity to grow as a coach herself.

“The issues of the game first fall on me as the coach,” Coach Leake said. “It’s my job to help these girls bounce back and have successes in the future. Nobody likes losing, but hopefully we can go back and hit some things to help us do even better the next game.”

Through the aggression, passion and effort given throughout the game, many players left the game fueled with determination to do better in the next game coming up this Friday, against Northpoint. Sophomore Riley Henderson is optimistic due to the resiliency the team showed against Zumwalt South.

“I think the team as a whole showed really great perseverance even when we got behind in a few places, we kept bouncing back the whole game,” Henderson said. “I’m super excited to see where the team goes this season since we’re so early into the season. We’re super young so far and keep growing older with every game.”

With the upcoming season ahead, players and coaches alike are excited for what the program will look like this season. Even with a loss, the team is able to reflect on the challenges and growth made through the game. Leake describes the optimism she keeps for the team and how emotional games lead to more well-rounded players.

“This is a game I think every girl can look back on and say this was a game that made them better players,” Coach Leake said. “Games like these help keep us determined to do even better in the future.”