Blood, sweat, and tears. That’s what Shadow’s girls varsity basketball team put into their training. The hard work and dedication paid off Thursday night when the Lady Knights dominated Xavier in a 64-43 win.
Between the amped-up rivalry and Shadow’s last big win over Xavier, both teams were ready to face off last week. The Lady Knights planned for a win, and win they did.
“We won as a team…it means that we can overcome big obstacles and prepare for any bigger competition,” said player Victoria Hyatt (‘24).
The teams shared matching league records for the past two years. Both schools have extraordinary, hard-working players and are well aware of that fact, but the DEL champions of this year’s league know, and have known, where they stand.
“They’re good rivals but we just knew we were better than them…We put that real work in and the scoreboard showed it tonight,” said Coach Keith Ruzan following Thursday’s game.
Prior games between the rivals have been close, but last week’s game was far from it, with Xavier trailing for the entire game.
Don’t mistake it for an easy win though. This goes back months and for some players even years’ worth of non-stop preparation.
“All summer long, all winter long… it’s a sacrifice,” said Coach Timothy Britton about the training regimen.
The defensive strategy played throughout the night was a continuous, unbeatable match, even for Xavier’s star players. The Knights were determined to maintain control of the ball and whenever Xavier gained ground, Shadow’s response was fierce.
Not only will the teams remember the game, but the spectators will as well. Shadow Hills represented, and more than doubled the home team’s side of support.
For four quarters on Thursday night, the Lady Knights stayed focused on winning. The trained hard and played hard.
“It feels great, we’ve put in hours of training and learned to work best as a whole, it feels amazing to see it pay off,” said player Holly Martinez (’25).
The team isn’t done yet, this was only the beginning.
