With the postseason rapidly approaching now is the time for Greenwich Country Day School’s varsity girls basketball team to compete at its highest level.

The Tigers took a significant step in doing so when they earned their latest victory, a convincing 56-26 home win over FAA rival Greenwich Academy on Feb. 11th.

Greenwich Academy played a strong first quarter and held a one-point lead after eight minutes of action, yet Greenwich Country Day imposed its will thereafter. Behind its full-court press, the Tigers turned up their intensity on defense and turned away the Gators.

The win improved Greenwich Country Day’s FAA record to 3-3 with one league game remaining on its regular season schedule. Currently, the Tigers are in fifth place in the nine-team FAA and are on pace to receive the No. 5 seed in the FAA Basketball Tournament. Freshman London Fulmore led a balanced scoring effort with 14 points for Greenwich Country Day, while teammates Lara Young, a senior and McKenna O’Neill, a junior totaled nine points apiece.

“I’m really proud of my team and how far we’ve come,” Young said following the Tigers’ win over the Gators in what was their final home game of the season. “They definitely challenged us, once we got into our full court press we were able to get 10 easy buckets. At that point, we were able to startle GA and it really helped us pull away.”

Greenwich Academy, which has a record of 1-7 in the FAA and has xxx wins overall on the season, received 12 points from guard Eliana Price. The Gators are shorthanded these days and went into their matchup versus the Tigers with only seven players. Senior forward Mirabel Rodgers, one of GA’s leading scorers is out for the remainder of the season after she tore her anterior cruciate ligament recently. Guard Reagan Gray is also sidelined for Greenwich Academy. She is recovering from a sprained ankle and could be back in action in approximately one week.

“Short numbers provides opportunities for other players to step up  and I saw some positives,” GA first-season coach Jimmy Cassidy said. “We had a good first quarter and not even a horrible second quarter, there were just a lot of nerves, a lot of situations people may not have been in before.”

GCDS trailed GA, 12-11, after the first quarter, then outscored the Gators, 11-0 in the second quarter to head into halftime with a 22-12 advantage. The Tigers extended their lead to 47-20 following three quarters of play by outscoring the visitors, 25-8, during the third quarter. Playing stellar man-to-man defense and utilizing its full-court press, ignited the hosts’ scoring spurt, especially in the third quarter.

“Today, we didn’t start off as strong as we should have in the first half, but we really came through and the score shows it and we brought our energy in the second half,” GCDS senior forward/center Mia Grant said.

Junior guard Skylar Brokaw and Grant each scored eight points to also propel Greenwich Country Day’s offense.

“Going into the second half I said we have to turn it up, we know who we are and that first half we didn’t showcase that,” Brokaw said. “In the second half, we definitely picked it up and everyone either on or off the court brought the energy and intensity.”

Price made two 3-pointers for the Gators in the first quarter and guard Lydia Hartman, who scored nine points, banked in a 3-point shot at the buzzer, giving GA a 12-11 edge. The home team methodically took control of this FAA matchup thereafter.

Young swished a 3-pointer from the left side, giving GCDS the lead for good at 14-12. Brokaw converted a layup off a pass from Young and Grant hit a jumper, making it 18-12 in favor of the Tigers.

Creating turnovers with their press, the Tigers took a 10-point lead into intermission, then built on it once the second half commenced.

“We’ve been working on our defense trying to pressure the ball,” Grant noted.

“I thought the first half was a little shaky but once we got it together and played as a team and starting running through our sets with team basketball, we were able to get a good lead,” said O’Neill, who excelled on both ends of the court. On offense, everyone got touches. I felt like once our defense improved, the game changed. We started scoring more and stopped them from scoring.”

Fulmore converted two 3-pointers in the game and senior forward Iyla Brown finished with six points for GCDS, which got two points from freshman forward/center Kaia Sutherland.

Senior center Mallory Walker had four points for GA, which visits Masters School on Feb. 18, then plays Newton Country Day School in its final home game of the season on Feb. 20th.

“We battled, I’m so proud of them,” Cassidy said. “The result on the scoreboard may not be perfect now. But this is the playing experience that is invaluable to making the program right.”

Greenwich Country Day visited FAA foe Masters School today, travels to King School tomorrow (Feb. 14) and visits School of the Holy Child on Feb. 18th. The FAA Tournament is scheduled to begin on Feb. 24th.

“We’re probably most likely a five seed,” GCDS coach Elisa Brown said of the upcoming FAA tourney. “We are excited, we are that wildcard. We can beat any of the four teams in front of us.  So far, we have contended with all of them. I think that people may be surprised, I’m excited.”

Said Young: “We have really shown that we can beat any team in the FAA. We beat Hamden Hall, who is seeded No. 1 and we’re seeded No. 5, so I want a championship. I know my team wants a championship.”

As for what it will take to win the league title?

“Discipline and coming out in the second half and the first half with the same amount of energy,” Young noted. “Making sure we don’t have dips or anything.”

“I was talking to our coach – this is the year that we could  win it,” Grant added. “If we come out the way we did in the second half the whole game, we can get it.”

Indeed, depth has definitely been one of the Tigers’ season-long strengths.

“Everyone on the team can score, shoot, pass and play defense so that makes us so dangerous,” Brokaw noted. “I think we’re going to be dangerous going into it. Nobody knows who we are.”

“We have a lot of different players who can do a lot of different things,” O’Neill said. “It’s effective when it comes to overall assets of our team.”