By Devlin Francis ’15 | Social Media Director

By beating crosstown rival Grosse Pointe North 71-38 on Friday Feb. 28, the girls varsity basketball team claimed their third consecutive District 22 Championship, and advanced to the regional round of the playoffs.

“Anytime you play North and get a win it’s good for the team, the school, the students,” said head coach Kevin Richards. “We came out to compete, and that’s what we did.”

South opened up on a 6-0 run, and led North 17-7 at the end of the first quarter. North never got within double digits of South for the remainder of the game as South was truly dominate on both sides of the court.

“I’m really happy with how Aliezza Brown played, Bre’nae Andrews was all over the floor, we got active production out of our subs,” said Richards. “The girls played a great game.”

Brown ‘15 led the team in scoring with 24 points, hitting six three point shots.  Captain Cierra Rice ‘15 was second in scoring with 17 points, while Andrews ‘14 was with 16 points.

The trio combined for 57 points and all seven of South’s three pointers. They alone outscored North by 19 points.

The remainder of South’s team was still key to the victory by adding assists, rebounds, and providing key defensive pressure said Richards.

Winning the district championship was key as the team hopes to get back to the title game at Breslin Center in East Lansing for the third consecutive time, said Captain Katie Kish ‘15.

“It feels great (to win the district championship),” said Kish. “It’s a big step in the process of getting back to Breslin.”

After falling short in two heartbreaking losses in the title game the past two years, the team is looking forward to another shot, said Rice.

“We want to win it all this year,” said Rice. “That’s been our goal for the past three years and we want to accomplish it this year.”

South will face Farmington Hills Mercy in the Region 4 semifinal on March 4, in what could pose as a challenge to South.

“This region having the top three teams in Class A (Detroit Martin Luther King, Mercy and South), anyone can win,” said Richards. “It’ll be a challenge, but we’re excited for it.”

Despite the glamour of the possible return to the title game, the team needs to stay focused on the games directly in front of them, Rice said.

“We need to take it one game at a time,” said Rice. “We need to be regional champs, quarterfinal champs, and then get back to Breslin, that’s our goal.”

If the girls beat Mercy, they’ll play the winner of the King vs. Livonia Stevenson game in the regional championship and advance to the quarterfinals. Kish has confidence the team can accomplish that, she said.

“We’re concentrating us right now, and trying to play the best we can” said Kish. “If we do everything we need to do then the wins will come.”

The Region 4 semifinals game against Mercy will take place at 5:30 p.m. on March 6 at Farmington Hills.

Photos by Adam Morris ’15