Girls Basketball secured an easy victory against Morristown Beard with an impressive defensive and offensive performance, leading the team to a 47-21 win at home on Wednesday, Feb. 1.

“I think our team put up very good defense and was able to prevent Morristown from making a lot of their shots,” said sophomore player Aliya Lambo after the game.

The victory won the Rams a spot in the quarterfinals of the Morris County Tournament, where they narrowly defeated the Madison Dodgers, 44-42, on Feb. 4, earning the Rams an impressive 18-1 record for the season.

At the Morristown Beard game on Feb. 1, the Rams started off strong with Lambo winning the tip off and scoring the first basket of the game. The Rams held up a terrific defensive end, preventing the Crimson from getting a field goal the entire quarter. By the end of the quarter, the score was 10-1, with the Crimson receiving a point from a free throw.

The game started to pick up after Morristown Beard was finally able to get their first field goal with three minutes remaining in the second quarter. However, the Rams continued to score and added ten points that quarter, with two 3-pointers by junior Katie Tighe. The first half ended with the Rams enjoying a dominating score of 20-9.

The third quarter was the most intense with many strong blocks by senior Allyson Kuridza, preventing several baskets. Sophomore Kayla Brand put up a shot, which was recovered by senior Madison Jenisch and put into the basket. In another play, Brand and Jenisch connected again, leading to an exciting layup by Jenisch with an assist by Brand.

A steal by Jenisch assisted Lambo in her right-side drive, leading to a flawless layup. Finally with only two seconds on the clock, senior Sydney Jenisch inbounded the ball to Tighe. Tighe, sitting inside the ark, put the ball up for a buzzer-beater. It was a beautiful ending to the third quarter, extending the Rams lead to 20 points.

The last quarter yielded the most notable play of the game. Sydney Jenisch had a spectacular three-point play. She successfully started her drive to the right side of the basket, swooped underneath, and made a reverse layup, while receiving a foul on the way up. She had no difficulty sinking the free throw.

Tighe finished off the game with 13 points and six rebounds. Lambo had eight points, four steals and four rebounds, whereas Madison Jenisch had nine rebounds and nine steals.

“I felt excited to watch the girls show all their talent on the court,” sophomore superfan Lindsay Wolf said. “I think that Randolph’s strength in this game was being alert during different plays. Their good communication and teamwork allowed for ease when going to the basket.”

The Rams will compete against Morris Catholic in the semifinal round of the county tournament on Friday, Feb. 10.