End of basketball season
The 2025-2026 basketball season comes to an end
The basketball season’s end is fast approaching, but that doesn’t mean the Warriors are winding down on the court. The women’s basketball team played its last home game on Monday, February 17. Although it didn’t end in a win, spirits remained high. The Calvary Warriors are a tough team, and our Warrior women held them to only an eight-point lead by the time the buzzer sounded.
In the locker room before tipoff, Coach Jaylen encouraged the team to focus on each possession and win the small battles. It was a slow start during the first quarter, and Calvary outscored Union. The intensity ramped up in the second quarter, and both teams kept up impressive defense. Throughout the second half, scoring picked up. Nyanbay Puok was the lead scorer throughout the game, dominating the paint and even stepping out of her comfort zone to sink a three. Kassie Abrahamson put up shots from both the perimeter and paint, and was close behind Nyanbay in points on the board. Jillian Dougherty’s lockdown defense and quick hands gave her five steals, while Ericka Montour’s court vision and decisive thinking led to multiple assists. It was a team effort, and our women kept the other team scrambling to keep their slight lead.
After the game, the team gathered outside the locker room and presented Nyanbay, who is the team’s only senior this semester, with a poster and flowers. This spring, Nyanbay will be graduating with a BS in Biomedical Science Pre-Med and an AS in Business Administration, with a plan to continue her education by going to medical school. She attended College View Academy from grade school to high school and started playing basketball and volleyball in sixth grade. When asked about her student-athlete journey while in college, Nyanbay said this:
“Being a senior means your teammates look to you for leadership, and this year, my focus shifted to lifting others up so we could all rise together. My first two years were incredible! I came out of high school hungry for competition and grew so much, but tearing my labrum junior year and fighting back from that injury my senior year was one of the hardest mental battles I've ever faced. Walking off the Thunderdome floor after the last home game, not knowing it would be the last organized game I'd ever play, hit different, but I wouldn't trade the experience of playing alongside these girls for anything."
Even though this was the last game of the season for the women, they are looking forward to taking a rest, working on drills and skills over the next few months, and getting back into action in the fall. Some are even continuing with basketball by joining intramurals. We hope to see you in the Thunderdome next year for the basketball season of 2026-2027!
By Sami Hoffer