In a 60-58 nail-biter, the Mumford varsity girls basketball team beat Renaissance on Feb. 16 to win the Public School League championship for the first time in the school’s 68 year history.
“I’m on cloud nine,” said head coach Kareem Hogan after he climbed out of the post-game pile of screaming players.
But Hogan was confident before the game when players and coaches talked about the team and their 15-3 season.
“I feel like we are going to win,” Hogan said. “My team has worked hard all season, they are great student athletes. They’ve played their hearts out to make it to where they are today.”
The Mustangs made it to the championship game last year, but lost to King. Junior Tiara Earnest, who was the leading scorer during the season averaging 12 points per game, said she feels like the team has grown a lot.
“At the start of the season we had trouble scoring. Since we’ve come together it’s a lot easier. We put trust in one another and that’s what’s supposed to happen if you want to win,” Earnest said.
Junior Adoreya Williams agreed.
“Championship is what I see in the future,” Williams said two days before the game. “We’ve grown as one and when we get on the court it’s an amazing connection.”
Williams was the leading scorer during the championship game with 21 points.
Senior ZaMaria Polk has played varsity since her freshman year. She was in tears after the win.
“I love my teammates! We went through so much to get where we are now,” Polk said. “Some people didn’t believe we would be back in the city championship but my teammates and I proved everyone wrong. We made history.”
