12/19 – Andover: 59, Lawrence: 46
12/19 – Andover: 54, Hotchkiss: 27
12/20 – Andover: 37, Suffield Academy: 49
1/7 – Andover: 52, Dana Hall: 34
Girls Basketball competed in the Groton Holiday Tournament over winter break in December, defeating Lawrence Academy (Lawrence) and Hotchkiss to advance to the championship game against Suffield Academy. Despite a strong performance in its initial matchups, the team ultimately fell short. On Wednesday, Girls Basketball bounced back with a decisive victory over Dana Hall.
As part of the 51st Annual Groton Lawrence Holiday Tournament, Girls Basketball competed against a strong and highly competitive field of New England preparatory schools. Despite its defeat against Suffield in the championship game, the team had numerous unforgettable moments. Heading into the tournament, Andover memorized plays and committed to intense practices. Chloe Abou-Ezzi ’27 detailed how the team prepared for the matchups and highlighted a key play that defined their approach.
“Going into the tournament, we mainly emphasized playing aggressively on defense and executing our plays on offense. In the week prior to the tournament, we focused on making sure we knew all of the plays like the back of our hand, making sure that we were putting in the most effort that we could. We’ve been working on one of our offensive plays since the season, and we got it down really well for the tournament and executed it just very well,” said Abou-Ezzi.
Sara Damon ’29 commented on Jules Stevenson ’28’s performance on the court, praising Stevenson’s ability to influence the game beyond scoring.
“No matter whether [Jules is] making shots or not, she’s drawing a couple of defenders every time she touches [the ball]. And what’s so impressive is whether she’s open or not, she’s making the right play. And when she gets double-teamed, she’s passing somebody else’s open, whether it’s our point guard, Alani Rodriguez [’27], hitting a three. She really made some great things happen,” said Damon.
The first win of the tournament against Lawrence set the tone for the rest of the tournament. From that moment, the team knew that it wanted to make it to the championships. After its loss against Suffield Academy, Abou-Ezzi reflected on the team’s development over the course of the tournament.
“Although the game didn’t result in a win, we got so much better compared to the beginning of the tournament. It definitely showed our potential and showed how well we can play when we play as a team and when we believe in one another. We have built up a lot of team chemistry, and making it to the championships really boosted all of our confidence and raised our expectations for ourselves going forward,” said Abou-Ezzi.
Despite returning from winter break just two days prior, the team jumped straight into Wednesday’s matchup against Dana Hall. With a game plan focused on effort and hustle, the team, Co-Captain Laney Cafua ’27 commented on the leadup to the team’s victory.
“It’s hard to play a game coming right off of break, but we came back right where we left off. You could tell that everyone on the team was committed to working over the break, so the transition was smooth. We stood out by approaching every play with intensity and drive. [Head] Coach [Jen] Weissbach said, ‘New year, same us,’ and that perfectly encapsulates how we wanted to go out during that game,” said Cafua.
Looking ahead, Damon emphasized the importance of perseverance in every game, regardless of the score.
“One thing that we can really take away from this sequence of games is that no matter what the score is, we should always be keeping our heads up, whether it’s on the bench or on the floor. There will be games where we’re losing by 20, and there will be games where we are winning by 20, no matter which it is, coming out in the second half and playing like it’s 0 [to] 0 is a big emphasis for all of us,” said Damon.
Girls Basketball will look to build on its momentum when it hosts Choate on Saturday.
