South High Nation Took Over Holyoke Last Night. Lady Colonels Took A Hard Fought W Home, 66-55. Wow.

Holyoke, Massachusetts - Grace O'Gara led the way with 31 points and infinity steals for The South High Lady Colonels of Worcester, Ma. Tamia Nunes chipped in 19 along with what she does every other game....EVERYTHING. It was the usual suspects for sure, but man did the Colonels come to play.

So I have read a few different opinions and outlooks on this game and most of them are correct. However, the word that strikes me as misguided with last night's game would be "UPSET". Where do I begin? lol. The only thing that would make anyone say this was an upset would be the rankings themselves. #20 South High Vs. #13 Holyoke High School. Now this is meant to take nothing away from Holyoke, they had a great season, have some star players, including this Bianca Ortiz, who collected her 1000th point last night but the theme remained the same for the South High Lady Colonels and cast. We are playing a different brand of basketball. They are being coached differently. They are playing at a higher level than every opponent. If you wan't my honest opinion, we did not play well by the season standards offensively last night. South High shot luke warm last night but this is where they thrive and it's going to be nearly impossible for anyone to beat them when they heat back up. Defense. It's been the most consistent attribute. I'm not sure if anyone is keeping the full stats on how many steals Grace O'Gara has, but that number has to be worthy nationally. Team steals as well. They were using a situational press last night and it was enough to walk away with a 66-55 Victory but I will be honest...We should have won by 30. Happy to walk away with the win and the experience..Haven't seen that kind of basketball atmosphere since it was Diago and Kareem at WPI.

So first things first. Colonel Nation! Wow. I can't explain what last night meant for me. This is what sports is all about. Any sport. The support of the fans. The love and appreciation for all the hard work these ladies put day in and day out. They deserved this. When I get to these games early, I always setup and don't move. Try to get the best spot so I won't have interference getting these highlights. Sometimes, that lands me in enemy territory and I pay attention to my surroundings. I listen and watch how they react and last night was one of the best things I have ever heard. The gym was packed already and I had caught wind that South High was sending a bus of students to the game. I had assumed they were already in attendance because of how packed it was...but the Colonels pulled the most Braveheart move and showed up a little late...Flanked them..and the entire gym became ours seemingly at one point. I heard a middle aged woman yell "Goddamnnnnnn South High brought the whole damn city" Haha. Times were tough this year with some lingering Covid Bs, so I get that not everyone could attend and so forth. My advice to you, get to this next game. We are witnessing something special. This support means the world and these girls deserve it. As does South High itself. I honestly don't have a bad word to say about Holyoke. Not one. The AD treated mysef and my guy Dave Kenney with welcoming, genuine hospitality and respect the minute we got in there. Had a nice chat with the AD and she filled me in because upon arriving to Holyoke, I saw a sign that said the home of VolleyBall. Did not know that. Beautiful Gym. An hour is not that far, wouldn't mind seeing that team on the schedule in the future.

Grace O'Gara was Shamrock Sports Co-Player of The Game last night. She could get this award every game but last night, I'm giving it to her because she didn't quit, slow down, or get discouraged. She doesn't get frustrated to the point she loses focus. In the game of basketball, things don't always go your way. Some nights you shoot cold. You aren't getting calls, it happens to everyone. Grace and her entire team have mastered the ways out of that. Shooting isn't the only way to win games, it's the easiest. The real legends find ways to pull themselves back into the game. Defense is one. She never stops. Not one second.

Janaya Hampton-Hutchins. Shamrock Sports Co-Player of The Game. Every championship team needs this player. Humble. Tough as nails. Tenacious. Selfless. She is in on every single rebound. Super quick. Strong. Your best bet is a jump ball call because you aren't taking the ball from her once she gets her hands on it. Instinct. She's not there to score but will if she needs to. Just an incredible performance last night. The intangibles that don't make the stat sheet are some of the most important attributes in this game. She was a huge part of their win last night.

Jaiyla Colon. The intensity you showed last night was beyond words. Defensively, Offensively. Just overall impressive and inspiring. Stay focused.

Bryan Bascones. Senior instincts but she's a Freshman. Just knows where to be under the rim, seemingly gets the board everytime. Noticeable offensive board crasher and executes the put back fundamentally perfect.

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Also wanted to give a shout to this Bianca Ortiz. When I first got to the game, I watched her hit like 30 non chalant 3 pointers in a row. This girl right here has a phenomenal competitive demeanor and the talent is as good as Ive seen with my own two eyes. All I could think watching her warm up was damn, they got a Grace too. Moves and handles the ball flawlessly, gets to the hole. Shoots the lights out. Deceptively quick release from deep. She got her 1k point last night on a three and the crowd went bananas. Congrats Bianca!