After earning a place in the quarterfinal round of the Class 3A state playoffs, Dawson County’s varsity girls basketball team finished their season with a 59-32 loss to Calvary Day School on Tuesday, Feb. 28.
The team, as well as parents, students and supporters, made the five-hour trip down to Savannah in preparation for the tenth Elite 8 appearance in program history.
Coming into the quarterfinal matchup, the Lady Tigers had won playoff games against Hart County and Adairsville.
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But against Calvary Day, Dawson had trouble converting shots and scored just six points in the opening quarter.
The Lady Tigers would make their best run of the game in the second quarter, cutting the deficit to 20-14 before the hosts made a shot just before halftime to take an eight-point lead.
Turnovers would plague Dawson for the remainder of the game, with the team committing 21 overall. They were also out-rebounded for the first time in several games, with Calvary Day earning a 38-35 edge on the boards.
After Eva Bishop scored all seven points the team could muster in the third quarter, the Lady Tigers would eventually fall behind for good.
The deep playoff run not only marked an important milestone for first-year head coach Will Anglin, it also proved to be a fitting achievement for the three seniors on the team.
Calleigh Lamb, Emma Grace McCarron and Kirklyn Porter played under three different head coaches, helped maintain the team’s cohesion and became vital leaders this season. They had also never previously made it past the first round of the state playoffs.
But as Anglin said to those three at the beginning of the season, the team would go as far as the seniors were willing to take them.
And through all of the difficult regular season losses the Lady Tigers faced against their region opponents, those experiences — and the senior leadership — helped define their postseason success when it mattered most.
Dawson County finished the 2022-23 season with a 16-15 overall record, a third-place finish in Region 7-3A and four All-Region players.
(Special thanks to North Georgia SportsLink for providing information from this game)