The Lady Warriors have had an amazing regular season with a record of 21-1. They are now in the hunt for a Western Conference championship, which they have been working towards all season.
On January 29th Steinbrenner faced their district rival, the Sickles Gryphons in the Semi-final game at home. The energy in the gym was high with everyone cheering on the Warriors. This was essential because they knew this game wasn’t going to be easy without a crowd on their side. Sophomore Sarah Coble said, “To get the win we’re going to have to play together and eliminate the threats by creating a plan before the game.”
The game started off strong for both teams ending the first half tied at 28-28. But Steinbrenner got momentum in the third and fourth quarter and pulled it away winning 56-45. Coble also said, “We have multiple ball handlers and shooters which is a really big threat for the other teams because it’s hard to guard multiple shooters while also covering the lane.” This is hoping to be in their favor on Friday January 31st in the final game for the title. Sophomore Avery Adams said going into the championship game, “I think if we play good defense and communicate on the court then we should be able to beat Bloomingdale.”
The Warriors then faced the Bloomingdale Bulls for the Western Conference title on January 31st at home. It was a hard battle for Steinbrenner but the energy was just as high as the semifinal game. The warriors were unfortunately down 44-23 at the half but they were hoping to make a comeback in the third and fourth quarter. Steinbrenner had momentum and got the lead to only being down by six, but it wasn’t enough to defeat the bulls. The final score was 69-56. The Warriors didn’t win the Western Conference but that’s not stopping them from their goal of being district champions, and going far in the playoffs.
Head coach Alex Hertenstein said, “It has been 11 years since girls’ basketball has won districts so being able to put up a banner would be extra special. What a lot of people don’t see is the work being done during the summer and brutal pre-season workouts so being able to hang a banner after all their hard work would be indescribable”. The semifinal district game will be on February 6th against the East Lake Eagles
