Following the two day ice break, the freshmen girls’ basketball team came back to the Warriors home turf with new energy on Friday, Jan. 30, defeating Hutto Hippos in a fast-praised game. The Warriors took control right from the tip and held that composure throughout the entirety of the game, securing a 41-15 win.

“This is the second best ranked team, so we were going into it with a little bit of concern,” Beatrice Marvel ‘29 said. “But it ended up to be a pretty good game for us.” 

The Warriors won the opening tip right off the bat, following this Lana Wilson ‘29 passed the ball to Aubrey Rose Lawrence ‘29 who scored the first two baskets of the game. The Hippos attempted to take possession of the ball, but couldn’t get through the Warriors’ tight defence. After a few minutes of back-and-forth playing style on the court, Lawrence scored two free throws to calm the Warriors down. As the Warriors held their lead, Ava Punalekar ‘29 and Lawrence made multiple back-to-back baskets, allowing the Warriors to stretch their lead 10. Lana Wilson ‘29 secured another basket for her team in the final few seconds, finishing the first quarter with a 12-0 shutout.

“We all played like a team, we all did amazing,” Punalekar said. “Overall, I think I had a lot of great rebounds, giving it to my point guards, and I had a few really good shots.” 

In the beginning of the following quarter, the Hutto Hippos made their way through the Warriors’ defence, gaining a steal. Keeping the spirits up, the Warriors scored the next points by Punalekar succeeding in a free throw and Lawrence scoring twice in a row. With five minutes left, the Hippos took possession of the ball, scoring their first point in a free throw. Going back and forth, both teams had many different chances to score. In the last minutes of the quarter, Marvel got a steal and scored the final point of the half. Going into halftime, the Warriors doubled the Hippos score, ending the quarter up 24-3.

“They started playing defence a lot stronger,” Marvel said. “They were fouling a lot and really getting up on us.” 

Coming back from halftime, both teams swiftly moved across the court, trading possessions. Deepening the lead, Lawrence scored another goal. Following the bucket, the ball was carried down by Hutto to the opposing end where it was stolen by Violet Everard ‘29. After being fouled, she gained a free throw opportunity and scored two points for the team by making both of them. 

With four minutes left, the Hippos’ strategy got more aggressive, by now trailing behind by 20 points 28-8. At the end of the third quarter, the Warriors were leading with a score 33-10. 

“It was very fun because I haven’t played in two weeks,” Alexis Wallace ‘29 said. 

The final quarter started with the Hippos dribbling the ball down the court, soon followed by Marvel getting a steal. In the first half of the quarter, both teams played a fierce head-to-head game, leading to multiple shot opportunities for both sides. With three minutes left, Marvel scored another layup, now the score being 37-15. Extending the lead, Lawrence made a clean two point shot, after which the Hippos took possession of the ball. The Warriors left the quarter proudly after their victory 41-15.

“It was just so powerful and such a mood lifter seeing your best friends really ‘take home the money’,” Ian Schultz ‘29 said. 

The Warriors will be back at the court on Friday, Feb. 6 against the Round Rock Dragons.