To say that the Middletown High School varsity girls basketball team has had some struggles this year would be a pretty big understatement.
For a team that fell just minutes short of capturing a Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association (MPSSAA) 2A State Championship to fall to a team that has struggled to win games against even the lowliest of opponents has been a tough pill to swallow for all of the players but especially the senior class.
The expectations were high coming in to this season, expectations which were well-deserved for a team that still maintained all of the qualities needed to be a contender on the state level.
You had the physical presence in the paint coming from junior Carly Tolino and senior Morgan Stottlemyer who could scoop up rebounds with ease and dominate smaller centers and forwards giving Middletown the chance to rack up lots of second and third chance points.
Then, on the outside you had the smooth ball-handling of senior Megan Harne, an athletic dual-sport athlete who was appearing to come in to her own when running the offense.
Add in senior Jess Racz who had made shot after shot after shot in the past season and had really developed a scorer’s touch in her junior year.
Then you had the young players like sophomores Paige Tarleton and Rilee Bradshaw who had shown moments of magic while playing for the junior varsity team a year ago.
And after a 3-0 start to a season in which the Knights (5-15) easily handled the Brunswick High School Railroaders, Williamsport High School Wildcats, and the Catoctin High School Cougars, those expectations seemed to be well deserved.
But, then the train fell off the tracks.
We won’t describe how bad things have been for the Knights as they have had moments that could surely bring a team and its fan base down.
They do however have a chance to make it right, even if only for one night, when they take on the Smithsburg High School Leopards at home on Senior Night Thursday February 20th.
There might be no better chance for the Knights to get a win this season, as they have only two games remaining, this one and a showdown against county powerhouse Tuscarora.
Middletown has also been playing better basketball lately beating the Boonsboro High School Warriors 41-29 on the 12th of February and barely getting beat by Washington County powerhouse, North Hagerstown, by a score of 67-63.
As of late, Middletown has been lead by Racz who after a slow start to the season has stepped it up averaging 15.5 points over the past four games including the 20 points she scored against the Governor Thomas Johnson High School Patriots and the 21 points scored against the Frederick High School Cadets.
The JV girls basketball team will look to also take a win over Smithsburg on Thursday February 20th at 5:30 pm in their next to last home game. The Knights have seen production on offense from the Weaver twins, Peyton and Morgan, who have both shown good versatility in operating the offense and providing points from all over the court. Along with the Weaver twins, freshman Lauren Keeney has been a weapon for the Knights, using her ability to sink outside shots efficiently.
