For the Williamsburg Christian Academy girls basketball team, last season’s objective was clear: win a Division III state championship or bust.
Coming off losses in the state title game each of the two previous years, the Eagles accomplished that goal almost with ease as they cruised through the regular season and conference play before routing Amelia Academy 70-43 in the state final.
“Last year we preached all the time about being hungry, and finally getting that state title off our backs, and it really showed when we jumped out to a 17-0 lead (in the state championship game against Amelia Academy),” said 5’11 junior standout and reigning state Player of the Year Keyana Brown, who has led the Eagles in nearly every statistical category since she started as an eighth grader. “This year is all about proving ourselves. We want to show that we’re a state power and can compete with anyone.”
The first step in the mission to further cement themselves as perennial state powers came before the start of the current season, when WCA bumped itself up to Division II in search of stiffer competition.
“Even though we were going for that first state championship [last season], this season is more important because it’s about pride,” said junior Jalynn Ponzo, the Eagles’ second leading scorer at roughly 11 points per game. “A lot of people thought we would struggle moving up a division and we just want to prove them wrong.”
While the journey officially begins Wednesday night when No. 2 seeded WCA (29-7) hosts the winner of Tuesday’s opening-round matchup between No. 7 Fredericksburg Christian and No. 10 Covenant School in the state quarterfinals, the Eagles have long since been tuning up for their postseason run with a brutal non-conference schedule that includes games against some of the top programs in the country.
In losses to Our Lady Good Counsel (63-32) and Archbishop Spalding (56-38), the top two high school girls basketball programs in Maryland who each have been ranked in the top 10 of the nation according to USA Today’s Super 25 rankings, WCA took the good with the bad.
“The reason we schedule games like that is because, for one, it humbles you, but it also exposes your weaknesses and shows the things you need to work on,” WCA head coach John Perkins said.
Added assistant coach Christopher Brown, “We took some losses, but more importantly, we took away lessons.”
Perkins explained that in order to better prepare his girls for the best competition, and to become the best players they can be, scheduling a 33-game regular season is necessary.
That’s because Metro Conference play has served as more of an organized practice for WCA in recent years rather than a competitive means of preparing for a state tournament. The Eagles are 74-0 against conference opponents the past four years, and this season alone, never beat a Metro team by less than 25 points.
“We want to be challenged and we want to get better every day, and we feel like there’s no better way to do that than to have the most competitive schedule possible,” Perkins said. “Our ultimate goal, more so than winning a state championship, is to prepare these girls for the next level.”
While some losses have been humbling, others have been motivational.
In a 56-41 loss to top-seeded Miller School, the likeliest of opponents should WCA reach Saturday’s DII state championship, the Eagles took a 27-24 lead into the half and then completely fell apart scoring just two points in the third period, which proved to be the game-changing run.
“Against Liberty Christian (a 72-58 loss) and Miller, both games we had the lead, the other team just came out more ready than us in the second half,” forward Tiara Strong said. “We knew what we were getting ourselves into, we just have to always remember to keep our heads in the game and stay focused the entire time and not take quarters off.”
Improvement is clearly No. 1 on the Eagles’ agenda, because when you ask about the defining points of the season, the players and coaches alike tell you about the losses. But there have been several impressive victories, too.
Two days after the loss at Liberty Christian, WCA regained its composure to beat another tough team, Norfolk Christian – ranked No. 3 in DII – for the first time in school history, 79-63. Wins over Tidewater Conference champ Cape Henry Collegiate (54-41) and Maryland power St. Frances (53-52) are impressive, too.
“Twenty-nine 29 wins is definitely something to be proud of,” Brown said, “But we always put more emphasis on the losses because we learn more from those.”
Brown says she likes her team’s chances at capturing a state title again this year, but hesitated calling it a repeat in light of competing in a higher division.
“I think if you look at it like you’ve never accomplished it before, it makes you want it more,” Brown said.
While Brown, a three-time first team all state selection, has been the centerpiece of the team for almost four years now, the Eagles, even with just 10 players on the roster, are deeper than ever this season.
Losing veterans Libby Timmer and Becca Perkins to graduation last spring left a clear void in the defense and rebounding departments, but individuals such as Ponzo, Strong and freshman point guard Stephanie Seaman, one of the most improved players and rising stars in the Metro Conference, have each have elevated their play significantly. Four-year starting combo guard Tonika Pierce is a sharp shooter and veteran leader and, throw in senior Ashley Cunningham, and that’s perhaps the deepest front court in the entire state.
Newcomer Kiana Batagelj, a 6-foot forward, and Lynn Dunn have also provided a huge boost off the bench for a team that, if anything, lacks size in the post.
“It’s a good group of girls,” Perkins said. “They share the ball well and aren’t the slightest bit selfish, which is good when you have that many talented players.
“It’s a luxury and a blessing, because to play as many games as we do, you kind of have to be deep.”
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