The JV girls basketball team went home satisfied Thursday night after their win against Fort Zumwalt North. This was the consolation game for the St. Charles West Tournament and the Knights took fifth place. Although the team had an overall promising performance, one player in particular stood out.

“Macy May stood out with her performance on defense and offense, driving strong to the hoop and giving her full effort every moment on the court,” JV coach Charles Lott, Jr. said.

The first game the girls played was Monday night against Cor Jesu. Going into the game, the team realized they would be facing some of the best competition in the tournament. However, they were confident and played a close game. In the end, the score slanted slightly to the opposing team; the Knights lost 28-33.

“We played really good defense, but the girls on the other team were really tall,” sophomore Lexie Biggs said. “We needed to finish more shots.”

But the loss did not get the Knights down. Knowing they could win the other side of the tournament’s bracket, the team got pumped for Tuesday’s game against Timberland. As expected, the competition in this game was not nearly as tough and the game was won 38-33. According to Lott, the girls played the best defense he had ever seen them play, this year and last combined.

“We kept them under 15 points so we got donuts the next day,” sophomore Madison Kelly said.

Winning Tuesday’s game put the Knights into the final game Thursday to play for fifth place against Fort Zumwalt North. Going into the game, they viewed their opposition as their greatest competition. The game was off to a slow start in the first quarter, but the half ended with the Knights in the lead. In the second half the girls came out strong and pulled through victoriously, winning the game 28-24.

“ When we won we were all very energized and happy,” Kelly said.

The team received a plaque for fifth place that will be hung up somewhere in the school. Playing in this tournament allowed the Knights preseason preparation, as well a chance to shake out the first game jitters.

“This tournament showed us our strengths and weaknesses to see what we need to work on and a chance to check out the teams we will be up against this season,” Lott said.