Lady Cavs Break Thru To Finals March 7, 2009
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In a very real way, although I’m sure Coach Rowe and the players and the fans would never admit it, everything this season was a prelude to Friday’s state Division III semi-final game. That’s because the 2007 and 2008 seasons ended right at this stage, with a loss in the semi-final game. Almost immediately following last year’s tough loss at Paul VI school in Fairfax, the strong crop of returning players each vowed that “next year” would be different. Next year would not end with a semi-final loss.
Well, next year is here…. and next year is, in fact, different. Back at Paul VI, the second seed StoneBridge faced off with sixth seed Tandem Friends from Charlottesville. The teams met earlier in the year and SBS came away with a 20+-point victory. But the rematch started out quite differently. Tandem mostly handled the SBS press early stayed close throughout the first two quarters. Caitlyn Unsworth led the way with several key buckets and Dani Cribb added a key three-pointer to help keep SBS on top. The halftime score of 22-18 left the strong contingent of SBS fans a bit nervous as the teams headed for the break.
Coach Rowe’s Cavs started the second half determined to do two things: continue to wear down the younger Tandem team with a variety of pressing defenses… and pound the ball down low. And they did. A special set offense designed to get Sarah Tabb and Ashley Foster the ball in the post resulted in early third-quarter buckets, which translated into press-induced turnovers, and the lady Cavs were on a roll. A 20-5 third quarter roll, in fact, that essentially put the game out of reach much to the delight of Trey and the dozens of SBS students who were on hand.
It seemed as if the seniors simply were not going to be denied this breakthrough game and a trip to the finals. Ashley Foster basically took over the low post, finishing with 14 points. If it’s possible to score a “quiet” 24 points (while battling the flu!), Caitlyn U managed to do it. She has a way of making the game look easy, until you step on the court with her and try to stop her. Good luck.
One year ago after a semifinal loss, the SBS girls stood in the hallway of the Paul VI gym and determined to write a different story in 2009. A goal was set. Thanks to 12 months of hard work and determination — and a carefully planned road map set out by Coach Rowe and his staff — things are different this year. Stonebridge 53, Tandem 31.
One more game. Bring on Carlisle!
StoneBridge And Broadwater face off on Big Saturday February 28, 2009
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Five games. Three venues. Ultimately, two schools would be left standing to face off on a Big Saturday to remember in the Metro conference.
To start things off, the semi and final rounds of the JJV 8 boys and girls tournaments took place in Isle of Wight (girls) and Atlanti Shores (boys). On the boys side, StoneBridge won their semi final game whih set up a re-match with Broadwater, which had pegged SBS JJV 8 boys with their lone conference defeat earlier in the season. On the girls side, SBS’s young team extended its record to 11-3 in a thrilling double overtime victory over top-ranked Portsmouth Christian. It was sweet revenge for SBS after losing the lead and the game in overtime at PCS during the regular season. Christina Cash and Ellen Lee led the way for the Cavs in what turned out to be a 2:15 marathon that pushed Coach Cal and his team’s second game to a mid afternoon start.
By the time the girls hit the floor for their final, the JJV8 boys were putting the finishing touches on their conferene championship. Luke Unsworth and Josepth Gutshaw led the way throughout the season and are setting themselves up to be a solid inside-outside threat for SBS basketball throughout their high school careers. On the girls side, Broadwater proved to be too much but our girls continued to play hard until the final whistle. The season? A tremendous success: 11-4 record, the second place trophy in the conference tournament and a bright future for these young girls.
Coach Cal, whose day began with the trek 30 miles west to Isle of Wight for a 10am game, darted out of the gym some time passed 3pm and began the long trip to Broadwater for the boys game. Unfortunately for our boys, they fell at Broadwater, dropping them to fourth in the conference. But the day was a tremendous success, especially with two competitive schools facing off in three venues. I’m still a relative newbie to the Metro, but I can say that Broadwater is earning a fine reputation with me. Their teams always are prepared. Their kids always play hard and with respect. Their fans are cordial. I couldn’t think of a better team to face on Big Saturday.
Cavaliers Post Rare Sweep Of Fourpleheader February 21, 2009
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Dateline: Feburary 19, 2009
How much fun can one school’s basketball program have in one day? The StoneBridge Cavaliers basketball program, with players ranging from the sixth to twelfth grads, swept four games on three courts today in a rare “fourpleheader.”
The action got started with the JJV boys Metro tournament first round game in which the #1 ranked Cavs defeated Portsmouth Christian behind the solid play of Luke Unsworth and Joseph Gutworth. After a tight first half, the Cavs pulled away in the second half to advance to the second round.
Next up: the Lady Cavs JV team, which has been steadily gaining strength and building momentum. In this their last regular season game, the Cavs needed a win to secure the third seed in the conference tournament. Coach Crowe’s girls took a lead into halftime and then held off Hampton Christian’s strong charge in the second half. The hard work and commitment of these girls is paying off.
Game three: After Senior Sarah Tabb received her 1,000-point ball from Athletic Director Woolard, the Lady Cavs breezed to their 66th consecutive Metro Conference win. The Lady Cavs will have the opportunity next week to extend this remarkable streak to 69 games in the Metro tournament.
The nightcap involved a trip to Isle of Wight for a rare evening game or the JJV girls team, who entered their tournament as the 4th ranked team and were seeking to avenge an earlier loss to Williamsburg Christian. It turned out to be a defensive struggle and the low-scoring affair came down to a final defensive stop by the young Lady Cavs who advanced to the semi-finals.
Whew! Over 40 kids on three courts spread out across about 40 miles.
Lady cavs compete tough in holiday tourney December 27, 2008
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The Lady Cavs split the first two games of the Greyhounds tournament at IC Norcom, winning the first game before falling to Booker T Washington (and the refs) in Saturday’s semi-finals.
The Pilot’s coverage of Friday’s game featured a large photo of our very own Caitlyn Unsworth pulling up for two of her 17 points (photo of print edition below). After leading early, the Cavs fell behind by 12 at the beginning of the fourth quarter before closing the gap to three with tightening defense. The Cavs then induced another turnover and were ready to take the ball in with a chance to tie until the refs conferred and refersed the call. Booker T went on a run to stretch the gap back to more than a dozen.
Still, the Cavs should come away from the game with confidence. We didn’t play our best game, got into early fould trouble, had to endure some questionable refereeing in an unfriendly environment against a top 10 public school…. and were only down by three in the fourth quarter. This bodes well for the rest of the season.(Season record: 9-2)
Link to Pilot’s story on Friday’s game.
Friday’s Box:
StoneBridge 52, Norview 32
STONEBRIDGE: Unsworth 17, Rowe 8, Foster 10, Tabb 18, Wash 9. Totals: 21 6-9 52.
NORVIEW: Edwards 18, Acuna’ 2, Cuffee 1, Matthews 2, Harris 6, Payton 1, Lucas 2. Totals: 13 4-8.
Halftime: StoneBridge 35-13. 3-point goals: Edwards 2, Linsworth 2, Rowe 2
Print edition caption: Caitlynn Unsworth of StoneBridge, right, shoots over Lashay Lucas of Norview during a Lady Greyhound Classic tournament Friday. ( Steve Earley / The Virginian-Pilot )
girls finish strong February 29, 2008
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the girls contended well for all four quarters but fell 41-30 in the state semis. Great effort. Had chance to win late. More later…
OK… It’s morning now and I think these girls did a fantastic job this year. Truth be told, we played the best team remaining in the tournament yesterday and we could have beaten them. Consider this: our opponent scored 92 points on Thursday and we held them to 41 points yesterday. We beat them on the boards; our defense did an excellent job of keeping them out of any rhythm.
And we came storming back in the fourth quarter. Our strong contingent of SBS fans made quite a racket which (perhaps!) helped induce turnovers by our opponent on three successive possessions — okay, the girls get 99% of the credit! We cut it to four or five with about 2:30 remaining and had the ball. A break here or there and we’re playing today in the finals.
What a great bunch of girls, and the prospects for next year are very, very strong.
Va-Pilot Story February 29, 2008
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Here’s the Va-Pilot’s story, online.
Girls boxscore:
Intro to the story:
By DAN COOLEY Special to The Virginian-Pilot For the first time, StoneBridge played host for both the boys and girls quarterfinals in the state private school basketball tournament as the higher seeds.
Girls Win, Boys Are Winners! February 28, 2008
Posted by Steve Elliott in basketball, boys, girls.Tags: basketball, boys
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I suppose we all left the gym tonight with mixed emotions. Our Lady Cavs managed a strong win over their opponent. Can’t recall the score but we were +20 or so. Our girls seem to be getting a step faster as the season progresses. They are working well as a unit. Their press is getting tougher. Ashlea and Sarah seem to be even more dominant.
Audio from tonite’s game here. Click on “girls basketball.”
Seems the girls got their nerves out of the way in this game, specifically the first half. After halftime, we turned up the pressure. Caitlyn Walsh nailed some threes along the way. Caitlyn Unsworth played her normal great game. We got some great bench play from Anna and Rachel. Sometimes — maybe especially in the playoffs — it can be tougher to play at home. Away games get the team, well, away. It’s “us against them” on the road. Tomorrow, the girls go on the road — Reston I believe. I think they’ll come out charging. There’s nothing to lose and everything to gain. Go for it, girls!
Victors in Defeat
The boys had a heartbreaking loss to a very determined Tidewater Academy. Tidewater was out-sized certainly, but they played a disciplined game, got some good bounces, made their free throws and hit a few real clutch shots at the end. But we’re not confused — the Cavaliers boys are winners. They won every time they stepped on the court. They worked and worked and worked. They took on several much larger schools and always contended, always kept their composure, always showed respect for the game, the coaches, the refs.
It happens. Anyone who has played any organized game knows that sometimes the shots don’t seem to fall. And this crew also learned another life lesson — the burden of success. After the game, Coach Cal said to me that a few years ago, we wouldn’t have all felt this much heartbreak for a loss in boys basketball. But last year changed everything, and this team and their coaches did a tremendous job carrying the mantle of “State Champions.”
Let’s hear it for the fans!
Wow– what a scene tonight! Great fun. Great intensity. Great cheerleading. Great homemade shakers. Great concessions. And Cavaliers Club members even got some free popcorn and drinks!
I hope others will use this space to extend their thoughts and appreciation to the team, to the coaches and to the administration for creating this environment for SBS to come together and unite… like a small town… like a family of friends… always keeping things in perspective. There are bigger fish to fry for these boys. And the lessons they’ve learned are invaluable. Thanks, Coach Cal. Thanks guys. For a great season!
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