Friday night’s matchup between George Mason and William Monroe’s in girls basketball proved historic as the Dragons defeated the district-dominating Mustangs 50-44 for the first time ever.
“It’s a signature win for us,” coach Jesse Stafford said. “William Monroe’s varsity girls had never beaten George Mason until today.”
Monroe’s victory did not come easily though as George Mason combatted the Dragons’ 3-2 zone with a pair of threes by freshman Raquel Dod early in the first quarter. However, Monroe’s Da’Jour Strother-Beasley had an impressive defensive stop that transitioned into a fast break and an easy two points keeping the Dragons in the game. Mason held the lead 12-8 at the end of the first quarter.
“Talk about David and Goliath, they’re a Goliath of a team, they’ve got multiple state championships,” Stafford said. “Not only have they beaten us in the past but they have beaten us handedly.”
Senior Makayla Morris took over in the second quarter with a deep two-pointer matched with a heads-up steal and a drawn foul. Morris had seven points in the second quarter as well as a rebound and two steals.
“[Makayla] had taken control of the game and played like a senior, she saw some things she didn’t like and she wanted to take control,” Stafford said.
A George Mason fast break ended with Morris on the floor in a heap with a knee injury. While the crowd stood in silence Morris’ teammates looked on anxiously. Morris hobbled over to the bench and her team surrounded her with support.
“We wanted to win [the game] for her, Stafford said. “It was a big loss for us but the kids rallied for her.”
Despite the injury the game continued and Mason used a late surge while Monroe looked to reorganize. Mason sophomore Nicole Bloomgarden dropped nine points in the second quarter to give the Mustangs the 26-24 lead going into halftime.
After halftime Morris came out with crutches and ice on her knee and the Mustangs came out with a full-court defense. The third quarter went blow for blow until Bloomgarden and Victoria Rund hit back-to-back threes giving Mason a six-point lead late in the quarter. Freshman Sam Brunelle caught fire late in the second half, completing a three-point play just before the end of the third, to whittle the Mason lead to 37-34.
Monroe’s defense held Mason scoreless for three minutes at the start of the fourth quarter, giving the Dragons a chance to take the lead for only the second time in the game. With 5:18 left in the game, thunderous stomping erupted into a cacophony of screams and whistles as a Mason offensive foul gave Monroe a chance to widen its lead. Brunelle stepped up with 12 points in the final quarter, going four for four from the free throw line to help spur the rally. Late threes by George Mason weren’t enough as Monroe claimed its first victory over Mason 50-44.
“They believed that they could win,” Stafford said. “Even when we went down by six or seven there was never any doubt and that is what makes this a signature win. [It’s] not necessarily that it was George Mason but because in the past we would have hung our heads but now we refuse to do that.”
Brunelle finished the game with a double-double of 27 points and 12 rebounds while Mason’s Bloomgarden led the Mustangs with 15 points.
After picking up their 14th win of the season William Monroe hit the road to face Clarke County (7-10) Tuesday night.
