The Lord Botetourt girls had a tough draw to open the Region 3D basketball tournament last week as they made the long trip to Abingdon for the four-five game. The Cavs dropped a 53-49 decision in Abingdon and the Falcons went on to win the region.
“We gave Abingdon our best shot and played them as close as anyone else in our region,” said Botetourt coach Renee Favaro. “It was a shame it was a quarterfinal game.”
The Falcons came out smoking, hitting five of their first six three-point shots. Abingdon led 24-10 after the first quarter but the visiting Cavs chipped away and cut the lead to a single point, 44-43, in the fourth quarter. However, North Carolina State commit Annsley Trivette proved to be a problem down the stretch for the Cavs.
“We fouled and got the player we wanted at the line, but struggled to box out Trivette and she was able to score off those free throw misses down the stretch,” said Favaro. “She really put Abingdon on her back from start to finish, proving why she is one of the best players in the state.”
Maggie Hoover led the Cavaliers with 21 points and seven rebounds. Senior Jaiden Dann added 11 points on her final outing as a Cavalier and point guard Addison Naff added eight points and three assists.
Botetourt shot 49 percent from the floor and 50 percent from threes, which will normally win the ball game. However, Abingdon took nine more field goal attempts and nine more free throws than LB due to strong offensive rebounding by the Falcons and Botetourt committing a few more turnovers than the home team.
The Cavaliers will graduate just one senior, Dann. Favaro had four juniors, three sophomores and two freshmen on the varsity roster. That’s a far cry from last winter when LB won the state championship with a team loaded with seniors. No one was sure how this team would do back in November but they competed all year, steadily improved and finished with a winning record at 12-11.
“Overall, this was pretty much a new team from a season ago,” said Favaro. “We played a tough schedule and grew tremendously throughout the season. The five starters really stepped into all new roles this year, with three sophomores starting. It really just took us some time to figure it out.
“We did a lot of ‘young’ things at times this year, but that is part of the process when you are rebuilding. With only one senior, I think this group will be able to hit the ground running in the off-season and through next winter. Everyone knows what to expect now, what is needed from them, and what it takes to get there as a result of this season.”
