McLean all charged up for the new season

Girls varsity basketball starts off their season with a win over the Chantilly Chargers

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Katie Romhilt

Senior co-captain Elizabeth Dufrane shoots a free throw after being fouled. This shot was one of her total of 28 points that game.

Katie Romhilt and Josh Bass

After a long wait, winter sports have finally arrived and McLean’s girls

basketball team started the season strong at home with their victory over the Chantilly Chargers. The final score was 54-43, going in McLean’s favor.

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Girls BBall start off the year with a 54-43 victory over Chantilly!!!

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A competitive team, the Chargers have bested McLean in the past, and this game was nothing short of a nail-biter, but McLean was able to pull away, behind senior co-captain Elizabeth Dufrane’s game-leading 28 points.

“The win feels great because we got our revenge on the team that kicked us out of the Region Tournament last year,” Dufrane said.

Dufrane’s senior season already had incredibly high expectations and if she continues to perform like she did during the season-opener, they will only go up. Dufrane is the highest leading girls basketball scorer in McLean history.

“It felt really good beating Chantilly,” sophomore Piper Tedrow said. “We all felt really redeemed for beating them. I feel like it was a big confidence booster.”

The game remained close throughout. At half, the Highlanders were leading 26-17, and were able to maintain the lead throughout the second half of play. Although they came on top this time, there is always room for improvement.

“I feel like we can get better, but it was a good start to the season,” Tedrow said.

After cutting down the nets and bringing home the Liberty District Championship last year, the varsity girls have an obligation to defend their title. With the girls triumph over Chantilly, they hope it will serve as a reminder of their dominance to the rest of the conference and will solidify them as a serious contender once again.