The girls’ basketball team slid into the holiday season with a winning score of 42-40 against James River on Dec. 21.

After several defeats in their previous games, the Lady Wildcats were able to steal the win against the Rapids before entering into the new year.

Head coach Andy Coffey was especially happy with the outcome of the game.

“They came out with a great game plan. They doubled on Galford and made a shoot outside. Zoe Camden had a great game with 18 points. When we get scoring from her or Jordan, We can be a hard team to beat. Haley Cruze and Chittum came up big on the board.”

The ‘Cats played their game against James River very strategically, making large advancements in the third quarter.

“Third-quarter was key to our victory. We outscored them 16-5. Our press defense created a lot of turnovers,” said Coffey. “It was a back-and-forth battle that we were able to come out on top of. Our girls played extremely hard and very composed, as we were able to cut into their lead and eventually overcome it to take the win.”

Senior co-captain Haley Cruze also had an optimistic outlook on how the game panned out.

“We played a really good game and everyone worked together as a team,” said Cruze.

The current record for the Lady Wildcats is 4-12, and Cruze and her teammates hope to continue their gamesmanship into 2018.