After a sickness spread through the girls varsity basketball team, as well as celebrating the Chiefs Super Bowl victory, the team had less time to practice compared to what they are used to according to junior Elise Grosdidier. However, Grosdidier said they made the most of their practice time.

 “Thursday we all went hard. We all tried to stay focused and really took time looking at film and [looking at] what [the other teams] did well and what we could improve on,” Grosdidier said.

Grosdidier explained that playing their rivals increased the teams’ desire to win the game, especially after both defeating and losing to the Mustangs in last year’s season. 

“We really had that drive and that want to win this game so I think it was more than what it had been in the past,” Grosdidier said.  “We also lost a couple games [that] we could have won so I think all that made us really want to win this game.”

Junior Lainie Douglas also said playing BVN has an effect on the team’s mindset heading into the game.

“Playing against rivals always makes us want to come out better and harder than we usually do,” Douglas said.

The Huskies started off the game trailing the Mustangs 15-4 at the end of the first quarter, however, Douglas expressed the team excelled at staying calm under pressure.

“I think we did really well playing under pressure and not like letting that get to us. I think we played hard, especially the last half,” Douglas said.

At the end of the third quarter, BVN led BVNW 44-22. Although the Huskies were down 22 points, Grosdidier said the effort was heightened later on in the game.

“I think we did a really good job coming back at the end, we were down 22 [points] at one point and then we got back within nine. Overall, I thought we did a good job coming together to make it a closer game,” Grosdidier said.

Along with this, she added that this game gave them things to consider for the postseason approaching.

“I think we just need to work on staying patient and not rushing things,” Grosdider said.

Similarly, Douglas said based on the Huskies’ performance during the game, the team has some things they can work on in upcoming practices and games.

“[We can] minimize our own errors like missed shots and turnovers,” Douglas said.

At the end of the game, the Huskies were defeated by the Mustangs 53-41, however, Grosdidier believes that it is important to consider both the positive and negative aspects of the game.

“After a loss like this, people should think about [what] we need to work on but there are also a lot of things we did well,” Grosdidier said.

The Huskies are scheduled to play against St. James Academy at 5 p.m. on Feb. 24, at Blue Valley Northwest.