2009 was the last time that Silver Lake girls had won their holiday tournament. With three competitive teams making the drive to Roseland, the Lady Mustangs knew that they needed to play their A-game. The 4-2 Alma Cardinals were the first challenge that the Mustangs faced after a six-day break. After falling to them the last two years in close matches, the Mustangs were hungry to pick up this win. They got off to a hot start, outscoring the Cardinals 18-7 after the first quarter. At the half, the Mustangs managed to keep a five-point lead. It was a grudge battle for the second half, with both teams scoring over 15 in both the third and fourth quarters. Thanks to a 69% free-throw shooting, the Mustangs were able to hold off the Cardinals with a final score of 64-58. Although the Cardinals led with field goal percentage by 15%, the Mustangs were able to find success in transition as they picked up 19 steals and limited themselves to 16 turnovers compared to Alma’s 26. The win put them in the championship game for Saturday.
Coming into the tournament with only one loss, the 7-1 Exeter-Milligan Timberwolves looked to win the tournament for the third year in a row. However, despite just leading by three at the first quarter break, the Mustangs dominated the rest of the way. Silver Lake outrebounded the Timberwolves by 10 rebounds and managed to pick up 17 steals to Exeter-Miligan’s 10. Moreover, Silver Lake had three girls in double figures for scoring adding to the 62-39 win. The Mustangs remain undefeated with the Championship victory.
