Things can change fast in Northern Virginia basketball.
Thursday night at Dominion the Titans had the ball with just over two-and-a-half minutes left in their game versus Rock Ridge. Dominion was up four, having held Rock Ridge to 24 total points up to that point. It was a special night for the Titans, one that saw Dominion honor its seniors pre-game. The home fans were excited to celebrate a win.
Then Rock Ridge, up ’til Thursday winless in the Dulles District, ruined the night–in a hurry.
The Phoenix scored 10 points in quick succession, capped off by four straight free throws by sophomore guard Eryn Chemoiwa, as Rock Ridge stunned Dominion, 34-31.
“I’m really proud of the girls,” said first-year assistant coach Jessica Smith, who was filling in for Head Coach Gordon Neal, away for undisclosed reasons. “That was clutch, all the way down to the end.”
The Phoenix struck fast. After a Dominion missed shot, Rock Ridge senior Kalen Walker buried a bucket. Then, when the Titans again pressed the issue offensively and didn’t burn clock, sophomore Nada Elsayed took it coast-to-coast to tie things up.
Rock Ridge girls have orchestrated an impressive comeback, lead Dominion 30-28 now with 1:13 left. Watch sophomore Nada Elsayed go coast to coast… pic.twitter.com/DwflD4gdSs
— Novahoops.com (@novahoopsCom) February 7, 2025
Dominion then missed a three-pointer, Rock Ridge rebounded, and Chemoiwa drove to give her team the lead. She was then fouled after the Titans’ Ahria Mehta missed a shot in the lane.
Up to that point Rock Ridge had been 3-17 from the free throw line, with Chemoiwa 0-3. She calmly drilled the two free throws to give her team a 32-28 lead. After Dominion sophomore Alina Barekzoy drilled a three-pointer with eight seconds left, Chemoiwa got the ball on the in-bound and was fouled again.
She calmly made both of those free throws as well, Dominion’s final look at the basket was no good, and Rock Ridge had pulled the stunning comeback upset.
“Very crucial for Eryn to hit those shots, I’m very proud of her,” said Smith. “It’s a great feeling for the team to see the hard work finally pay off…to come through and get the win tonight is very rewarding.”
The road win was a huge confidence-builder for Rock Ridge (1-5, 7-13), which moved within striking distance of Dominion and Tuscarora in the Dulles standings. Chemoiwa finished with 13 points and nine rebounds. Sophomore Simone Diby was also huge for the Phoenix as they gradually fought back from an early double-digit deficit. The tall forward had 12 points and 11 boards–a big reason why Rock Ridge out-rebounded Dominion significantly (40-26).
It was a disappointing loss on a special night for Dominion (2-5, 7-13), but the Titans still have two regular season games to fix what ailed them down the stretch Thursday night. Mehta had five points, six rebounds, and five assists, while fellow Titans senior Esther Ibekwe finished with a game-high 14 points.
–Chris Jollay
all statistics are unofficial
| ROCK RIDGE | FG | FT | TP | REB | AST | |
| DIBY | 5-11 | 2-4 | 12 | 11 | 1 | |
| BERNARD | 0-3 | 0-2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
| WALKER | 2-8 | 0-4 | 4 | 6 | 0 | |
| CHEMOIWA | 4-10 | 4-7 | 13 | 9 | 3 | |
| NZOLAMESO | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
| Elsayed | 2-5 | 1-4 | 5 | 5 | 1 | |
| Jenkins | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
| TOTALS | 13-38 | 7-21 | 34 | 40 | 5 | |
| Threes: | ||||||
| DOMINION | FG | FT | TP | REB | AST | |
| MEHTA | 2-10 | 1-2 | 5 | 6 | 5 | |
| NOONAN | 0-3 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| MYERS | 0-2 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| MIRABAL | 0-3 | 0-0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| IBEKWE | 7-14 | 0-6 | 14 | 8 | 1 | |
| Kelly | 1-4 | 0-0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | |
| Barekzoy | 3-11 | 0-0 | 7 | 1 | 1 | |
| Kimble | 1-8 | 0-0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | |
| Eng | 0-3 | 0-0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | |
| Ramirez | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Domonkos | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| TOTALS | 14-59 | 1-8 | 31 | 26 | 11 | |
| Threes: Barekzoy 1-7, Kimble 1-7, Eng 0-1, Domonkos 0-1, Mehta 0-2, Mirabal 0-3 | ||||||