The last time that the Woodgrove girls basketball team lost was during the 2021 Regional Semi-Finals, as the Wolverines dropped a heartbreaker to Potomac Falls. Now, 24 wins later the Wolverines have their sights on the 2022 regional title, after defeating Briar Woods 60-31 to claim the Potomac District Championship.
Sophomore guard Sadie Shores propelled the Wolverines to victory as she led the team with 24 points and six rebounds. Shores was also named Potomac District Player of the Year earlier in the week. After the game Shores spoke about how satisfying it was to see her team’s hard work pay off.
“It’s kind of surreal,” Shores said. “We worked really hard this season. Last season’s loss was tough, and to be able to pull it off this season – it feels great.”
Woodgrove Head Coach Derek Fisher also praised the team’s work ethic and performance throughout the year.
“The Kids have worked really hard to get this far,” Coach Fisher said. “Tournaments are not easy when you’re playing these teams for the third time. They earned it, they deserved victory today.”
The Wolverines also got a big contribution from junior forward Colette Baine, who like Shores was also named to the First Team, All-Potomac District. Baine tallied 12 points, four rebounds and two assists. Sophomore forward Hope Drake paced the Falcons with 17 points and five rebounds.
Woodgrove controlled the matchup from the tipoff as Shores would open the game with a pullup jumper that would begin a 7-0 run. The Falcons slowed the Wolverines down after a timeout halfway through the quarter, but not by much as Woodgrove would lead 14-4 at the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter turned into a scoring clinic for the Potomac District Player of the Year as Shores scored 11 of Woodgrove’s 13 points to help solidify the lead at 27-13 heading into half.
Coach Fisher complimented Shores’ skillset and her passion for the game.
“She’d rather practice basketball than do just about anything,” Coach Fisher said as he laughed. “Because of (Sadie’s) love of the game she’s always going to continue to improve. She’s a special talent, and has a special mindset. She’s motivated by the fact that she loves to play basketball.”
Despite all of the praise and accomplishments, Shores gave the credit for her success to her teammates. She also spoke about how grateful she was for the relationship she has with her team.
“If I didn’t have my teammates nothing would have worked at all,” Shores said. “We work together, we play together, we’re together all the time. We have great chemistry–I wouldn’t want to be with any other girls.”
The Wolverines continued their momentum throughout the third quarter as they outscored Briar Woods 20-6, which brought their lead to 47-19. Woodgrove would maintain their lead to eventually secure the win and the title of Potomac District Champions. Coach Fisher credited the team’s continued success to their day-by-day mentality.
“It’s one game in a row,” Coach Fisher said. “The day-by-day approach. We won today’s game, after today we’ll be going back to one at a time. Its cliché, but that’s the way you have to play it – win today’s game.”
Woodgrove will advance to the regional tournament and they’re set to matchup with North Stafford on Wednesday February 23rd at 6pm. Coach Fisher acknowledged that the team has to keep finding ways to improve as it advances deeper in tournament play.
“We have to keep raising our level,” Coach Fisher said. “The competition gets really difficult and we have to play better next week than we did this week – you have to keep trying to get better.”
–TJ Davis
@Ttown316