Stratford 42 - Cy Fair Bobcats 16

Typically when these two meet, it is a competitive match-up. At the Spartan gym on Friday, it was a total dismantling of the Bobcats. Cy Fair used all nine lives and will be glad not to see Sparty again until next year.

Stratford came out firing and never looked back. I’ll start with a note on the defense that gave up two points for the quarter and 8 total points for three quarters. The defense was led up front by Zoe Thompson, Allie Moss, Claire Kadane, and Aniyah Cunningham. The post was controlled completely by Stella Weiss, Brooke Sponsel, Reese Oppermann, Madison Williams, Abigail Williams, and Elyse Johnson. Stratford scored at will in the first quarter. The ball movement and passing to the open player was the best it’s been all year. Zoe drove to the basket and got a score and was later able to connect for one from the line. Allie got a layup and a free throw. Stella made a fantastic post move for one of her two scores and got one from the line. Abigail got a nice pass from Stella and scored as well. Claire nailed a great three-pointer to go along with another jumper to get on the board. After one, it was Stratford 18 - Cy Fair 2.

The story stayed the same for the rest of the game. Stratford gave up a few late baskets to the Bobcats after the outcome was inevitable. The defense was unflappable, and the girls were able to platoon in five at a time with the same brick-wall defense and ball movement. The scoring continued as Allie and Aniyah joined the three-point party. Aniyah also got a free throw. Claire added two more baskets. Abigail added a highlight with a last-second basket to close out the third. Zoe and Brooke both got a bucket, and Brooke added a free throw. Stella worked hard in the paint the whole game, and it paid off as she added two scores and two free throws to close it out with a game-high 11. A complete game from the Spartans at home to finish off the sweep of Cy Fair. Stratford 42 – Cy Fair 16

Stratford 33 - Cy Falls 41

Sparty visited the District-leading Eagles for a mid-week chance at revenge. They came up short in the end, but it was three quarters of the best game of the year.

Cy Falls is big and fast, and Stratford was going to have to earn every stop on defense and every score. The Eagles came out in their press, but this time Stratford was more prepared for the pressure. Sparty was able to pass through the pressure but couldn’t score on the other end. Allie Moss decided that the best way to break the press was to dribble through it and go to the hole. Allie scored two baskets going coast-to-coast on layups. Cy Falls abandoned the press and went to a zone to pack things in a bit. This allowed Stella Weiss and Brooke Sponsel to get things going in the paint. Stella made a great pass to Brooke for a score, and Brooke followed up with another basket in the paint. Allie wasn’t done as she got one more basket to go. The defense was solid, led by Zoe Thompson, Claire Kadane, Aniyah Cunningham, and Allie on the quick Cy Falls guards. They generated a lot of steals and some angst for the Eagles. The paint was not for the faint of heart as Stella, Brooke, Abigail Williams, and Reese Oppermann had to scratch and claw for everything. Cy Falls was able to get open looks as they also moved the ball well. After one, it was Cy Falls 11 - Stratford 10.

The second was more of the same. Allie got a great pass from Claire for a score. Claire then got a basket of her own. Allie returned the favor to Stella for a score, and Zoe dealt a pass to Brooke to get the open lay-in. The defense tightened as well, led by Aniyah and her pestering defense on the guards and an all-world effort by Reese. The Eagles had a very tall and athletic post that was rendered mostly ineffective by Resse’s efforts. All the girls out-rebounded and outworked the taller Eagles. Sparty took the lead at half, 19-18.

The third quarter was a snapshot of the game, two evenly matched teams going at it. There was solid defense and good passing by both squads. Stratford made a run to get up by five, but Cy Falls answered back to tie things up going into the last quarter. The excellent ball movement for Stratford continued. Stella added another score, and Brooke added two more baskets. Claire hit a jumper, and then Allie got a lay-up and the foul and was able complete the and-one for her game-high 11 points. At the end of three, the score was a fitting 30-30 tie.

The last quarter someone put a lid over the basket for Stratford. Shots that had gone all night just wouldn’t fall. Credit to Cy Falls as they really clamped down into a two-three zone, and Sparty just couldn’t shoot their way out of it. Stella had to take a beating to get the only basket of the quarter and a free throw. The defense broke down late, and a game that was way closer than the final score would indicate resulted in a rare Stratford loss, 33-41. These Eagles got the best of us this year, but the improvement shown this game shows just how much fight the Spartans have.