By Adrienne Howard ’26

Last Friday, February 13, 2026, the boys and girls varsity basketball teams traveled overnight to compete in the Mid-Atlantic Prep League (MAPL) Championships, which not only close out the season but also determine the final league rankings. Both teams entered the weekend confident but faced strong opponents in challenging game environments.

The boys entered the tournament seeded sixth and lost their opener to The Hill School, while the second-seeded girls defeated Peddie School before eventually falling to The Hun School of Princeton, finishing third.

Cam Weyforth ’27 said, “Our team always competes no matter the competition, and we are always going to put our best effort in.” After the game, however, Weyforth admitted disappointment. “I don’t think we played well… we had so much more to give. We still proved we were worthy, even if we didn’t end up where we wanted to be.”

Boys Head Coach Sean Crocker added, “We were unable to match their level of energy the entire first half. We gave up 65 points just in the first half,” he said. “Although the team made 15 threes, we needed to close out better on shooters and finish possessions with a rebound.”

He added candidly, “Coaches have to coach better. Players have to play better. Everything has to get better,” but noted, “There was a bit of improvement after halftime, as the players tried to execute what we were asking them to do to the best of their ability.”

On the girls side, Jessica Dang ’26 said, “We went in pretty confident. Our season had been going well, and we thought we were going to have the chance to play in the finals.”

That confidence was tested during their matchup against Hun. “It didn’t go as well as expected… it was difficult playing with such a short bench,” Dang added. “We communicated well. We have strong team chemistry and are good friends, which translates onto the court.”

Nicole Lueng ’26 said, “The whole season we played really well… we played hard to the end and still pushed ourselves, even if it wasn’t the result we wanted.” Maddie Greenaway ’28 echoed a similar message: “I felt confident. I thought we could win if we put our minds to it.”

Girls Head Coach Paul Sipes said, “The consensus on the team is that we wanted to do better than we did.” He credited individual performances, noting that “Nicole [Lueng] was our bright spot on Saturday.”

Sipes also pointed to external factors. “The refs called tough fouls aggressively, so our kids got a little timid and nervous and backed off,” Sipes said. “Hun also had a home-court advantage.”

While the final outcomes were not what either team had hoped for, the weekend highlighted areas for growth as both programs look ahead to the state tournament.