Stratford 35 vs. FB Austin Bulldogs 19

The Freshman Girls Basketball Team hit the road this week with a Tuesday visit to the Ft Bend Austin Bulldogs. This was a tale of two halves. Defense ruled the first half, and the girls broke it loose and ran away with a victory in the second half.

Defense was tight again in the first quarter with the perimeter guards holding things down well with a new look zone defense. When the Bulldogs did get through the inside, the paint was not inviting as Sophia Prejean started her own block party. The first quarter blocks were a sign of things to come as she ended up with 5 for the night. All the girls rebounded well, led by Shelby Thibodeaux, Stella Weiss, and Sophia. Points were harder to come by, but Shelby buried her first three of the season and Claire Kadane followed up with two buckets of her own. Aniyah Cunnigham and Allie Moss both added steals as the teams settled in, and Stratford led 7-4.

The second quarter was more of the same as the girls rotated in and out and kept the clamps on the Bulldogs. Madeline John was all over their guards, and Phoebe Heidel, Abigail Williams, Brooke Sponsel, and Ginger Koss kept up the pressure and loose ball dominance for the Spartans. Shelby added a basket and Stella went to work inside, going to the line twice and adding another basket to tally 4 points for the quarter. The bulldogs were able to hit a couple outside jumpers to stay in it. At the half, Stratford led only 13-9.

The third quarter is when the lid came off the bucket and both teams started dropping in baskets. The Spartans would increase the lead through hustle and matching the Bulldogs' aggressiveness. Led by great drives by Stella, who added 6 points on highly contested shots in and around the lane. Shelby also got paid off for all her hard work and hustle by adding a second chance bucket as well. Aniyah dropped a jumper to finish out the scoring, which led to a third quarter lead of 23-15.

The last quarter was when the Spartans left no doubt and shut down the Bulldogs. Sophia and Brooke both dumped in baskets to start the scoring. That’s when Claire Kadane decided it was closing time and went on an impressive scoring run, including points off her own steals, jump shots, and drives to the basket. Capped off by a beautiful “and one” that sealed the deal for the Spartans. Claire finished with 8 for the quarter and a game high 12 points. Stella added 10 points, Shelby added 7, and Aniyah, Sophia, and Brooke added a bucket apiece as the Spartans rolled to victory with a 35-19 win.

Stratford 51 vs. Cy Falls Eagles 9

The road show continued as the girls visited the Cy Falls Eagles Friday afternoon. This game was a repeat performance of Tuesday's win. Only this time the defense was better and the scoring more frequent. All adding up to a blowout win for the Spartans.

The first half was again highlighted by smothering perimeter and post defense. All the girls had numerous steals and rebounds. The scoring was in no shortage as well. Sophia Prejean and Claire Kadane got things started with two buckets from Sophia. Claire then went two for two from the foul line. Allie Moss followed up with a three-pointer and the rout was on. The Eagles managed only one basket for the quarter. The scoring rounded out with Abigail Williams adding a bucket and Stella Weiss getting one at the free throw line. The Spartans were up by ten after one.

The second half was a replay of the first with defensive and rebounding highlights going to everyone. Of note was Aniyah Cunningham and the frustration she caused for the opposing guards as they couldn’t get anything going. Claire and Shelby Thibodeaux got the scoring going with a bucket apiece. Stella then decided she wanted to take things over in the middle. She drove through traffic and cleaned up all kinds of rebounds to go off for 11 points for the quarter, capped off by an 'and one' after a hard foul. She would finish with a game high of 14. The defense only gave up one more basket to the Eagles. The Spartans led at the half 27-4.

The third quarter looked the same as everyone got in on the defensive party. The scoring was led by Claire’s 4 points. Madeline John and Ginger Koss both added a bucket. The Eagles made the mistake of scoring 5 points in the quarter because that would be it for the rest of the game. The third quarter score was Spartans 35,  Eagles 9.

The fourth quarter was just finishing up the job and shutting the Eagles down. Aniyah, Allie, Claire, and Madeline all took their turn frustrating the opposing guards in the last quarter. The Eagles couldn’t muster much of any real scoring chances. It goes without saying, with defense like this the whole team got things going. The post area was dominated by Shelby, Sophia, Brooke Sponsel, Stella, Abigail, and Ginger. The scoring continued to come in bunches as eight girls added points in the last quarter. Claire had three. Shelby, Stella, Sophia, Madeline, Brooke, and Ginger each added a bucket. Allie kicked in a free throw, finishing things off with a dominating 51-9 win.