Over Christmas Break, the Athens Academy Varsity Women’s Basketball Team played a total of seven games. Their holiday schedule included tournament games, region games and non-region games. The players saw a variety of success in their matches and grew together as a team.
Anchoring their team’s holiday schedule was the St. Pius Christmas Classic hosted in Atlanta at the St. Pius X Catholic School. On December 27, the team headed to Atlanta to participate in the three-day tournament. They saw early success beating St. Joseph’s of Greenville, South Carolina.
Heading into day 2, they sought their second victory against Charlotte Catholic. After a hard-fought game, they prevailed and were Championship-bound. Sitting between the team and the championship game was a day off. So after that well-fought, second-round win, the team headed to an AirBNB in Atlanta where they would spend the next two nights.
After resting following their game, teammate Ella Dillon introduced the team to a game known as ‘Hello Neighbor’ that would keep the team entertained, laughing, and improving their team communication skills.
Co-captain Josie Collins shared her favorite memory from the trip:“My favorite memory from the trip was playing games all together (especially Hello Neighbor). It was so great to get off our phones and be present!”
After spending roughly three hours playing this game, the team headed to bed before their much-anticipated and deserved day off at Six Flags.
Unfortunately, a severe overnight storm forced Six Flags to close, but this temporary setback did not stop the team from making the most of their day off. They quickly shifted gears and headed to Andretti’s where they played laser tag, enjoyed arcade games, and raced each other in go karts. To end the day, the team returned to a new-found favorite, Chattahoochee Food Works, for dinner.
On December 30, the team played in the Championship game of the tournament. In a hard-fought game with several lead changes in the fourth quarter, the team fell just short. Despite the loss, the team saw huge growth and improvement throughout the entire tournament. Head Coach, Brian Olson shared his thoughts on the tournament as a whole.
“The trip was amazing, I would travel anywhere with these young ladies. They are so much fun to be with and really enjoy being around each other. My favorite memory was playing some great basketball and teaching the championship game in a prestigious tournament”
Coming off a successful holiday run, the team now enters the second half of the regular season. Upcoming games include important region games, an appearance at the MLK Classic hosted by Holy Innocents High School and senior night, which will take place at the Spartan Center on January 31.