Despite suffering a disappointing 53-37 loss at the hands of league rival Chaminade, the girls’ basketball team is poised to make a deep run in CIF-SS playoffs for the second straight year.
While the defeat may have halted the team’s previous momentum, it may actually be a blessing in disguise, as players will look to gain motivation heading into the playoffs.
“Although we didn’t win the Chaminade game, we definitely learned a lot of things,” captain Lindsey Tse ’16 said. “We watched the film of the game as a team and know that we for sure need to work on offensive rebounding and just being confident in our offense and the shots that we take.”
The squad currently boasts a record of 18-7 in the regular season and has been less successful in league play thus far, with a 3-3 record.
“Jayla [Ruffus-Milner ’18] has been a huge factor to our team,” Tse said. “Her intensity on the court is infectious and just makes you want to play harder.”
Ruffus-Milner has been averaging 15 points and 7.1 rebounds per game so far this year, but perhaps the team’s greatest strength so far this year has been how close they are as a unit, keeping them in sync while on offense and defense.
“A lot of teams don’t have the chemistry that we do,” Lauren Lapersearde ’17 said. “We know each other pretty well, so we know everyone’s tendencies, and play to everyone’s strengths as much as possible.”
However, the squad often has difficulties converting on offense, which is something they hope to improve upon heading into the playoffs.
“Something we need to work on is when we make plays for each other, we need to score,” Lapersearde said. “Our defense is great. We play man all the time, because we are not a very big team, so our defense is pretty set.”

The team will play its final game of the season against Marlborough Feb. 11 before starting its playoff journey Feb. 18.