By BROOKLYN BROWN
One Feather Reporter
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – On the evening of Monday, March 11 in Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial (LJVM) Coliseum in Winston-Salem, N.C., the (#3) Lady Braves basketball team defeated (#1) Mountain Heritage, earning the title of North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA) 1A Western Regional Champions, with a final score of 64 -51. The Lady Braves will face (#3) East Columbus on Friday, March 15 in the same arena for the NCHSAA 1A State Championship.
Lady Braves Fr. (#10) Daisee Fourkiller-Raby holds the ball as the seconds run out and the Lady Braves become the Western Regional Champions during the regional title game in Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial (LJVM) Coliseum in Winston-Salem, N.C. on the evening of Monday, March 11. (BROOKLYN BROWN/One Feather photos)
In Wake Forest University’s arena, LJVM Coliseum, the Lady Braves entered a big stage. The bright lights and collegiate court amped up the pressure of the regional championship, but the Lady Braves stepped onto the court with confidence, and the Lady Braves’ fans packed the arena like it was their own, as to be expected.
The tone was set early, as Lady Braves Head Coach Ann Gardner reiterated in the NCHSAA post-game press conference.
“They came out from start to finish with a defensive presence that set the tone for the game. All year long we’ve put such an emphasis on buying in to our defensive pressure. We know that’s kind of where our bread is buttered,” Coach Gardner said.
“A lot of times this year we haven’t been able to press the entire game, but here lately we’ve been able to work on it and keep our stamina up and create some offense off of our defense.”
The Lady Braves led early with a score of 20-8 in the first quarter, forcing turnovers and dominating the boards at the onset. With defense locked down, the offense seemed to come easy, with the Lady Braves knocking down two clean three-pointers early from Sr. (#12) Loshi Ward and Fr. (#10) Daisee Fourkiller-Raby, shooting “lights out” as Mountain Heritage Head Coach Susie Shelton noted in the post-game press conference.
Fourkiller-Raby had an impressive game coming off the bench, tying with Sr. (#23) Creedon Arch with 10 points, following lead scorer Jr. (#32) Whitney Rogers who scored 17 points.
Fourkiller-Raby hit a three at the buzzer to send the Lady Braves into halftime leading 37-22.
In the second half, the Lady Braves continued to play with composure, making the most of their lead and maintaining the pace they set, which is a pace most teams cannot keep up with.
The Lady Braves celebrate a forced turnover.
Along with speed, depth on the bench is one of the strengths of the dynamic Lady Braves team, “We have depth all the way down. I feel comfortable putting anybody in at any time. The games that we’ve had this year have afforded me an opportunity to play a lot of bodies, so they get used to that time and that running and being able to contribute in many ways. It’s just a credit to them and their effort,” Coach Gardner said.
Soph. (#4) Dvdaya Swimmer appreciates the dependability of her teammates, whom she has played with for as long as she can remember. “I think playing together for so long, all of us playing together since we were peewees, there’s just a trust that we have in each other. For anybody coming in, we just know that they’re all going to step up and feel the shoes that they’ve replaced on the floor.”
Coach Gardner credits Cherokee basketball youth programs for creating a culture of success to carry into high school, and now to a state championship game. “They bought into what it means to be a Lady Braves basketball player. And this is not just me, this started in youth. This is a style of play that they’ve been playing since they were little kids, and I credit the youth programs all the way up to the time I get them.”
Behind the Lady Braves is a community who has raised them, a nation of people known as Aniyvwiya, the Principal People. This is an aspect of the Lady Braves’ success not lost on Coach Gardner and her team, “We have a tremendous fan base. They’re like our sixth man and they make every court, no matter where it is, a home court advantage for us. They’re family. They help pick us up when we get down, and they’re there to shout at us and get us right back into it. These girls play for them, they play for their tribe and there’s nothing sweeter.”
The Lady Braves will be competing Friday on the state championship stage for the first time since 1998. They will have a chance at winning the state championship for the second time in school history, following the 1995-96 state champions. The stage is big, but as Swimmer said, they are used to stepping up.
