With the regular season past the halfway mark, the improved Wakefield Warriors girls varsity basketball team has a 7-7 overall record, leaving the squad in a positive place it hasn’t been in a while.
The .500 mark through 14 games is Wakefield’s best start since being 8-6 back in the 2019-20 campaign.
In addition, Wakefield stands 3-4 in the Liberty District. That trio of league wins are the Warriors’ most since that same 2019-20 season.
Overall, Wakefield had a 5-17 record last season and was 1-11 in district play.
Going forward, the Warriors have the chance to post their first winning record since finishing 13-10 in 2019-20, when Wakefield played in the National District tournament semifinals and earned a region playoff berth. The players’ goal is to achieve at least a double-digit victory total this season.
“We have hung together well and have a good mindset,” second-year Wakefield coach Marcus McKinney told ARLnow. “The players have a lot of confidence and have bought into what we do in practice and take that into games.”
Wakefield entered the week having won three of its last five games, including a 67-64 district road win Jan. 23 against the Herndon Hornets. Other wins during that stretch were versus the McLean Highlanders, 53-50, in district action and a 51-40 non-league victory over private school Trinity at Meadow View of Falls Church.
“McLean is always strong, and Trinity was big and very good,” McKinney said.
The two losses in that stretch were against Liberty District frontrunners Langley and Washington-Liberty.
The season started strong for the Warriors when they opened play with a 54-33 home victory over Falls Church. That was followed by a close 45-42 non-district loss to Broad Run. Another close loss was by six points against Alexandria City.
In Wakefield’s Jan. 23 victory over Herndon, the Warriors closed the win thanks to clutch foul shots in the final seconds by Lola Vidaurre and Lucy Strawn. The game was close throughout, with Wakefield leading most of the way.
The win was Wakefield’s second over Herndon this season.
Strawn, Samantha Belvo and Brianna Gilbert are returning starters and top scorers for Wakefield, as is Dominique Harris. Gilbert missed the team’s first few games this season with a foot injury.
“Brianna provides a lot of leadership that has helped us,” McKinney said.
Prior to playing Herndon, Wakefield led 5-2 early against Washington-Liberty in an eventual loss. Gilbert led the Warriors in scoring with 10 points with five rebounds, Belvo added eight points, Lilah Denton scored four and Strawn three with five rebounds. Harris had six rebounds and one point.
Other top players for Wakefield this season are Zadie Monahan, Julian Combs, Laura-Kate Gwilliam, Sienna Lowe and Tatum Oliver.
One player Wakefield does not have this season is Camilie Marston, who now is a top player for Washington-Liberty. She was a strong inside player for the Warriors a year ago.
The high-school basketball season was on hold early this week due to weather conditions. The Warriors hope to host the Marshall Statesmen on Friday, Jan. 30 at 7:30 p.m. in district action.
