Following a thrilling victory in the conference championship game against Hillside, the Panther Creek women’s basketball team won the state championship for the first time in the school’s history this Saturday, with a final score of 76-65. After falling short at the conference championship last year and landing second place, the team’s victory on the highest stage is even more meaningful; particularly against Lake Norman – a team that had gone undefeated since the beginning of the season.

The game was an exciting event for all involved – the stands were packed with Panther Creek fans ready to show their support the team and all of the hard work they’d put in throughout the season. And the hard work definitely paid off.

“Today was the capstone for what we’ve been working for since the beginning back in November,” coach Sullivan said in a postgame interview. 

 

Star player Olivia Tucker described the long preparation process the team went through with Coach Sullivan in the weeks leading up to the final game: “We were watching film every day that week… we would spend thirty to forty-five minutes talking about them, their players, and how we should play against them.” Teammate Taylor Barner said, “We came to practice knowing we had business to take care of.”

Tucker recalls that despite the preparation, there were a lot of nerves before the game. “We had to be together a lot just to build chemistry before that game.” Going into the game, it appeared to be a tough matchup for the Catamounts – as Lake Norman had been undefeated leading up to the championship. “We had to mentally prepare ourselves,” Tucker said.

Despite the nerves, the team’s preparation and hard work succeeded when put to the test. The Catamounts won with a score of 76-65. Tucker attributes the team’s success to both their defense and the team’s work in transition. “We like to get out in transition a lot – we use our speed to our advantage, and that really helped us.”

Barner said that the team’s victory in the conference championship inspired them to finish strong and take the state title as well. “After that, we had the expectation to get a ring. That kind of pushed us – the motivation to win the whole thing.” She attributed their victory in the end to teammate and Wake Forest recruit Madisyn Jordan’s 3-pointer towards the end of the game, saying, “We were down, so I think her three kind of pushed us up and gave us motivation to finish out the game.” She also gave credit to the close-knit bond between the team and Coach Sullivan as an important factor. “I’m her eyes and ears on the court… I think our close relationship helped make the game easier.”

Barner said that the team’s victory this year will hopefully lead to more success in the future. “It’s definitely motivation to do it again next year.”