The girls basketball team hit the ground running in an impressive fashion during their opening game of the 2022-23 season with a thoroughly dominant win against Archbishop Prendergast High School. Friday’s face-off at the Juenger Gymnasium was the first of four home games to get the season underway for the Fords. 

From the tip-off, it was clear that the Fords were eager to get going. Both teams showed plenty of intensity from the start, with Senior Caroline Dotsey scoring a string of early points to get the scoring underway for the team. Dotsey was joined in the early scoring by fellow Seniors Mollie Carpenter and Sky Newman, whose offensive force and defensive discipline put the Fords in full control early on. They were comfortable and skilled in the aggressive nature of the game, with the rest of the team soon getting in on the scoring. Junior Aniya Eberhart displayed her overall quality on the floor with an impressive series of offensive plays and defensive strength. Once Haverford hit their offensive stride, they did not look back and took a commanding 18-0 lead at the end of the first quarter. The Fords more than doubled their lead in quarter two, closing out the first half with a score of 38-0. They continued to power through and dismantle the Prendie defense and shut down any of their offensive attempts. 

The Prendie offense was eventually able to get on the scoreboard in the second half with a free throw late in the third quarter followed by a trio of two-point shots. However, Haverford did not let up in the second half and continued a rampant run of scoring to emphasize their control of the game. 

The contest remained a team effort until its conclusion, with Haverford closing out an utterly dominant performance with a 50-7 victory against local neighbors Prendie. For the Fords, the win was about setting the tone at the start of a season that aspires to be a successful one. It was clear that the team’s togetherness and willingness to work hard on the court are sure to push them on to more dominant performances this year. 

The quality of this team brings all players into a promising position to succeed, with a dynamic group of sophomores, including Rian Dotsey, sister of teammate Caroline, who immediately impressed in her first varsity game. Another stellar performer, Sophomore Natalie Wright, had high praise for the senior leaders on the team, applauding their leadership to help the rest of the group in their preparation for the season ahead. “Everybody is very close…together as a team. I think we’re going to just get better overall,” said Wright following the game. 

The team’s intentions now: to keep up and improve on the work that was done last season. “There were a lot of ‘almosts’ last year,” said Sky Newman, “almost winning Central League, almost getting there to the finals of districts…we want to take that and use it as motivation to actually get there and win.” There is one thing Newman knows for sure: this team is going to give it everything and have fun doing it. 

Friday’s win allowed the Fords to shift their focus to their next game the following night at home to Merion Mercy Academy, where they claimed another victory 55-18. The Lady Fords look to take on Lower Merion on Thursday, December 8, a game day for both boys’ and girls’ JV and Varsity, at home once again at 7:30 at the Juenger Gymnasium.

You can watch the Haverford Sports Media broadcast here.

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