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The Calhoun School Lady Tigers ended their basketball season on Feb. 19 with a matchup against Keith during the Class 1A Central Region Championship. 

The team took home the runners-up title after a valiant effort in the region game, ending with a score of 51-28. 

Kenyotta Smith, the head coach of the Lady Tigers, said that she is proud of the effort the team put into the season even though they didn’t win the region championship. 

“For this to be the first time this group of young ladies has been on this stage I think they did an awesome job,” Smith said. “We worked together as a team but came up short. We are a young team, and I am beyond proud of what we were able to accomplish this season. We set a goal at the beginning of the season, and we accomplished it and then exceeded it.” 

The team started off strong, ending the first quarter with a score of 17-10 and the second quarter at 22-14. After the half, they came back ready to work and ended the third quarter with a score of 38-25 before closing out with a final score of 51-28.

The team’s top scorers for the game were Kamelia Hunter, who had 11 points, and Alivia Mason who scored nine of the team’s points. 

Smith emphasized her excitement for next season and said that the team pleasantly surprised her during their playoff matches. 

“Something that stood out to me during the team’s playoff run is how much they believed in themselves and each other,” Smith said. “I’m excited about the process that goes into getting the team ready for the season, from summer workouts and play dates to the first official day of practice. Next year will be great and I’m excited and ready to get started.”

The Lady Tigers held a 13-15 record during the regular season and not only became the Class 1A Area 5 Champions, but the Class 1A Regional Runner-Ups as well. 

Players Alivia Mason and Layla Gary were both named to the Central Regional All Tournament Team. 

Nicholas Townsend, principal of The Calhoun School, said that he enjoyed seeing the team grow over the season and regards them highly no matter what the outcome of the game was. 

“I think that sports and real life are one and the same,” Townsend said. “The girls had to deal with a lot of adversity this year and they overcame that adversity. They were able to go further than anyone was willing to give them credit for. There were many people who never even thought they could make it this far. With the addition of the middle school kids as well as the things our high school students had to overcome, the growth that all of them had, even their coach, was very encouraging. We’re still super proud of the girl’s on their accomplishments.”