The varsity girls basketball team defeated Amundsen High School by 13 points on Tuesday, while celebrating both spirit night and faculty/staff appreciation night.
Athletic Director Katie Johnson handed out goodie bags filled with candy to students who showed up in support, as students, parents, faculty, staff, and the boys varsity basketball team filled the Latin student section of the Field Gym.
The night started with senior Autumn Mendoza delivering her rendition of the National Anthem, which is sung only at special occasions. Then, Senior Prefect Ralu Nzelibe announced the starting lineups for both Amundsen and Latin.
Latin’s starters—seniors Ariel Goodman, Ellie Szczerba, Teagan Moroney, Sydney Dibble, and junior Cali King—kicked the game off strong. Ellie won the tip-off, and a quick pass to Teagan led to a layup and the first points of the game in only eight seconds of play.
Latin held the lead throughout the first quarter, putting multiple points on the board and largely keeping Amundsen on defense. The highlight of the quarter came in the last few seconds, with a three-pointer buzzer-beater from Teagan, putting the score at 22–14 Latin.
Multiple layups from Ellie throughout the second quarter kept Latin ahead, but Amundsen was only trailing slightly. The half ended 36–28, Latin.
“Ellie was a huge factor in the first half of the game, getting layups, grabbing rebounds, and having some great blocks,” Ralu said. “Her defense was huge. I’d definitely say she was the MVP of the half.”
During halftime, Amundsen went into their locker room, while Latin took two minutes to huddle around their head coach, eighth grade history teacher Max Rouse. They spent the rest of the break completing a passing and shooting drill on the court.
After halftime, the Romans kept their momentum going, scoring three-pointer after three-pointer, bringing the score to 47–33 in the opening minutes of the second half and forcing Amundsen to take a timeout.
“I think the biggest turning point [of the game] was the first three minutes of the second half,” Cali said. “We went on a very good run, we all took smart shots, and played real team basketball.”
Cheers and chants from the crowd echoed through the Field Gym, seemingly rattling Amundsen.
“I think the crowd had an impact on the court; they were getting in our opponents' heads and causing them to not play to their fullest potential,” Cali said. “In my opinion, they brought the energy, and it gave us a boost, making it feel like we had an extra player on the court.”
Both teams scored 10 points each during the remaining minutes of the third quarter, bringing the score to 57–43 at the end of the third.
After a quick start to the final quarter by Amundsen, Coach Rouse took a timeout after just one minute of play. Amundsen followed with another timeout 30 seconds later. Latin then took another timeout 24 seconds later, totalling three timeouts in less than two minutes of playtime.
Once play resumed, a two-pointer from Sydney and an easy layup from Ellie helped Latin keep their lead, even as Amundsen scored six points, leading Latin to focus on defense for the rest of the quarter. Cali made a free throw, and the Romans held the ball for the last minute of the game. The game ended 62–49, and fans erupted in applause as the girls shook hands.
The girls then came together with Coach Rouse for one final huddle of the night, closing out the game as a team.
“Honestly, my favorite part of being on this team is the friendships,” Cali said. “We push each other to be better, find a positive in all situations, and always have each other’s backs. No matter win or lose, we stay together as a team and lift each other up.”
The girls play next on Tuesday against Morgan Park Academy. Speaking about the team’s rest of the season, Cali said, “I’m looking forward to creating more memories with the six seniors on the team. There’s not much time left, and I will really miss them, so I have to take advantage of what time I do have [with them] and make the most of it.”
