DCSAA Semifinals vs. Dunbar High School
With the game tied 47–47 and 1:35 left in the fourth quarter, sophomore Jozi McDuffie drove to the basket and scored a layup, putting the Hoppers ahead by two. Following a missed three-pointer from Dunbar, sophomore Liya Fairfax attacked the basket and scored another layup, extending GDS’ lead to four points with only 52 seconds left in the game.
On Thursday, Feb. 26, the women’s varsity basketball team beat Dunbar High School 51–49 in the DCSAA Class A semifinals. The game was played at Georgetown University.
Class A is the DCSAA’s lower division, while Class AA is the higher division.
The Hoppers beat Schools Without Walls in the quarterfinals, 57–38, on Tuesday. Out of the 14 teams in the tournament, GDS was the sixth seed, while Dunbar was the second seed.
Dunbar won the opening tipoff and scored the first basket of the game. After turnovers from both teams, a layup from sophomore Elayna Lewis got the Hoppers on the board.
After that, the Hoppers really turned on the jets. After a layup from McDuffie, GDS scored 18 straight points—a combination of layups, jumpshots and a three-pointer.
With 1:15 left in the first quarter, Dunbar hit a three-pointer to end their five minute scoring drought. GDS led 21–6 at the end of the first quarter.
The start of the second quarter was rough for the Hoppers. GDS missed several shots and turned over the ball multiple times. Dunbar cut down GDS’ 18-point lead to six.
GDS only had two baskets in the second quarter. At halftime, the score was 28–23 GDS. But Dunbar was back in it and had the momentum.
After the half, Dunbar scored two layups and two free throws in quick succession, putting them up by one and giving the Dunbar Crimson Tide their first lead of the game since 2–0.
“We had a really big lead and then the other team started to come back,” McDuffie said. “Basketball is a game of runs, but in the stretch we had to come together.” The Hoppers reclaimed their lead when Fairfax was fouled and made both free throws, putting GDS up 30–29.
GDS and Dunbar played evenly in the fourth quarter, and the two teams traded points. The game was tied 47–47 with just under two minutes remaining.
The tension was building. Junior and co-captain Eden Samuel said after playing in so many close games, “you figure out how to handle it [the pressure].”
The game was coming down to the wire: McDuffie drove through the lane and scored a layup, and Fairfax received the ball under the basket with 52 seconds left and put up a shot. The ball then dropped through the net, giving GDS a four point advantage with 52 seconds left. Dunbar called a timeout.
Out of the timeout, the Crimson Tide immediately pushed the ball down the court and missed a layup. But a Dunbar player grabbed the offensive rebound and scored a second-chance point, cutting GDS’ lead down to 2. There were 42 seconds remaining.
McDuffie drove down the lane and missed a layup. Fairfax then grabbed the rebound and the team passed it around, seconds dwindling on the shot clock. Finally, McDuffie received the ball in the corner and missed the shot. The shot clock expired, and Dunbar held possession with 5.8 seconds left.
The crowd was on its feet. Dunbar could send the game to overtime with a two or win it with a three. The ball was inbounded to the Dunbar point guard. She dribbled it into the lane, where Samuel fouled her on the floor with 0.3 seconds remaining. Because the foul was on the floor, the Dunbar player would not shoot free throws.
The approximately 25 GDS fans in attendance rose to their feet and started cheering. The Dunbar player inbounded the ball to a player right under the basket, but she could not get a shot off before time expired.
The final buzzer sounded and the players on the GDS bench sprinted onto the court. After going 9–17 overall this season and 7–9 against DCSAA opponents, the Hoppers were advancing to the DCSAA championship for the second straight year.
“The girls were ready for the moment, and they stayed together, and staying together is what won the game for us,” head coach Pam Stanfield said.
Looking forward to the championship game, Fairfax said, “We can always work on defense, staying aggressive on offense and passing on offense.”
DCSAA Quarterfinals vs. School Without Walls
On Tuesday, Feb. 24, the women’s varsity basketball team played against School Without Walls in the District of Columbia State Athletic Association (DCSAA) Class A quarterfinals. GDS won 57–38, advancing the Hoppers to the semifinals.
The game started off fast. After winning the opening tipoff for GDS, sophomore Liya Fairfax scored the first points of the game with a quick three-pointer. But Walls quickly took the lead, and their strong defense made it difficult for GDS to get momentum. The two teams traded points, and Walls was up by one at the end of the quarter.
Walls started the second quarter with the ball but lost possession to McDuffie, who stole the ball and drove down the court to make a layup, putting GDS ahead 11–10.
“We played full court man-to-man defense, and that was a difference,” head coach Pam Stanfield said, “because we sped them up and we got a lot of transition points.”
Walls quickly regained their lead, and one of their players scored three consecutive layups in the paint. GDS was able to respond, though, and scored eight points after a Walls timeout to take a 27–22 lead at halftime.
GDS held a steady lead throughout the third quarter despite aggressive defense from Walls. In one particularly impressive play, Fairfax made a tough layup against the Walls defense and got fouled in the process. GDS was up 51–30 heading into the final quarter.
As the fourth quarter began, the Walls defense still wasn’t letting up and even tried double-teaming McDuffie.
Walls committed five fouls in the fourth quarter, more than they had in any previous quarter. They fought hard to catch up, but GDS held firmly onto their lead. The final score of the game was 57–38.
According to Lewis, the Hoppers thought they would easily win against the Walls team because they had beaten Walls by 25 points earlier in the season.
“I think we were asleep a little bit because we underestimated them,” Lewis said. “But once we picked it up, I think it was fine.”
“Towards the beginning, we looked tired and we looked like we were giving up a little, but towards the end we played hard,” she said.