Windham beats Lady Trojans

Despite falling short on the scoreboard, the 14th-seeded Weston girls basketball team feels victorious. Although Weston lost 72-46 at third-seeded Windham last Friday in the second round of the Class M tournament, it had a lot to celebrate because it achieved its three preseason goals and Lady Trojan senior captain Brittany Swanson scored her 1,000th point.

"I'm not going to allow a loss to take away from their accomplishments," Weston Coach Pat Cole said. "They should be proud of their regular season record, making SWCs and winning a state playoff game. They look back with pride to their accomplishments, considering what the program was like when the current seniors were freshmen."

The Lady Trojans were 13-7 in the regular season and finished the year a 14-9. Windham raised its record to 20-5 and proved it's a strong program that is legitimate. The Lady Whippets showed they didn't accumulate this record by playing a soft schedule and showed they could play with anyone as they gave vaunted sixth-seed Kolbe Cathedral a run for their money before losing 49-47 to Kolbe (19-6) on Wednesday in the Class M quarterfinals at Daniel Hand High to end their season at 20-6.

"It was a struggle for us to keep it that close," Cole said. "Windham is strong and is a legitimate three-seed. They play a great press defense and we didn't get any easy baskets."

The Lady Trojans trailed by nine at the half, 36-27. In the second half, the Lady Whippets slowly pulled away, increasing their lead to 17 after three quarters, 52-35.

"It was rough," Swanson said. "I felt the game was a lot closer and all of a sudden, they pulled ahead. The game was so fast-paced. We didn't know what to expect when we got here. They were trapping immediately and we were shell-shocked."

Swanson led Weston with 16 points, 14 rebounds and one steal.

"Going in, I felt it could have been my last game ever, so I played with what I had, which gave me success," Swanson said.

Sophomore Ellie Martin (15 points, 10 rebounds, one assist) hit her share of layups and was tough on the glass.

"I wanted to win and play hard in case it was our last game," Martin said. "Windham is a talented team and they are athletic. We all boxed out and were aggressive, which made it easier for me. Christina, Hannah and Taylor made good passes, which made it easier for us inside."

She was referring to juniors Christina Welsh (five points, three rebounds, three assists, two steals) and Hannah Hutchins (seven points, one rebound, one assist) and freshman Taylor Swanson (two points, four rebounds, one assist, one steal). Welsh deftly got the ball inside and would have had more assists if it weren't for missed layups and jumpers.

"We had to get the ball to the paint and draw the defense," Welsh said. "Brittany and Ellie did a good job of finishing."

Senior captain Natalie Odierna (two assists, two steals) and junior Dakota Sloop (one point, two rebounds, two steals) also contributed for the Lady Trojans.

With less than two minutes remaining in the game, lefty Taylor Swanson passed it to her older sister, who drew the foul. Brittany had 999 career points before she got the ball.

"The way everyone reacted, I could tell it was going to be something big," Taylor Swanson said.

Brittany Swanson made the first free throw to reach the milestone.

"It was awesome," Brittany Swanson said. "I had no idea and I didn't realize what a big deal it was."

Taylor Swanson said, "It felt good to help her reach her goal. Knowing I played a part in it made me feel good."

Windham stopped the game after Swanson made the free throw to honor her.

"It was an emotional moment because it was the end of Brittany's, Natalie's and [senior captain] Jessica's [Welsh] career. We wanted her to score her 1,000th point. It was the nicest loss I've been a part of because of the emotion of the moment."

Christina Welsh said, "It was a bittersweet ending. I'm happy for Brittany but I would have liked to win."