Back in February of 1999, the Falls Church Lady Jags entered their only conference championship basketball game, losing to the Mount Vernon Majors by 10 points after taking a halftime lead. Sixteen years later not only had Falls Church never beaten the Majors, they never led a game for more than the first quarter. Tonight the Lady Jags lost again, but carried a lead deeper into a game against Mount Vernon than at any time this century and beyond.

The Lady Jags opened strongly as they have for over half the games of the season, taking a 14-9 lead at the end of the first eight minutes. Natalie Samaha banked in 3 baskets to continue her three game hot streak and Leah Shaw struck paydirt with a bucket and her tenth "3" of the season. Fellow freshman Mia Pendleton added a back-door conversion on a pass from Amber Ecelbarger, who also lit the scoreboard in that first quarter. The Lady Jags dumped in 6 shots from the penalty stripe for their only points in the second quarter, but were still able to carry a very rare 3-point lead over Mount Vernon into intermission largely due to strong zone defense which cut down shot opportunities, limiting the Lady Majors to seven total baskets for the half.

Leann Loch drove a short range shot through the hoop halfway into the third. It turned out to be the only field goal by the Lady Jags for nearly 20 mid-game minutes, dating back to the last minutes of the first quarter. Ecelbarger went 4 for 4 at the free throw line for the only other Falls Church points. But the Majors could only produce 9 of their own points in the quarter and the game went into the final frame tied 26-26.

Mount Vernon swished in a perimeter shot and banked in a short-range one to take their first lead of the game in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter. The Lady Jags fought back with a steal and layup by Leah Shaw. Another Mount Vernon basket and FTs immediately followed and was answered by two more fouls shots and a layup by Amber Ecelbarger. It was a mere two-point game with 3 1/2 minutes to go -- the Lady Jags on the tail end of a 33-35 score. The drama of the oh-so-close moments and lost opportunities played out the rest of the way as the Jags offense failed to convert passes and missed close-range shots. Reduced to sending the Majors to the foul line to gain possession of the ball, Falls Church could pull no closer and Mount Vernon pulled out a six-point victory at the final buzzer.

Coach Pritchett's team played an impressive game against a team that had routed the Lady Jags in the past ten meetings by no fewer than 24 points and as many as 77. Not tonight. Defense remained the strong suit of the team and the double-digit first quarter of offense has been a consistent and pleasant surprise this season compared to past campaigns. The Jags could not sustain the fast start and withered on offense for over half of this game. They were sound at the free throw line, landing 14 of them, but those free throws were 45% of their total points tonight which proved to be too much and not enough at the same time.

Scoring Summary:  Natalie Samaha, 10 points; Amber Ecelbarger & Leah Shaw, 9 points each, Leann Loch, 3 points; Mia Pendleton, 2 points.