BERLIN- The Stephen Decatur girls’ varsity basketball team’s remarkable season came to an end last weekend with a heartbreaking 45-44 loss to Glenelg in the state 3A-East region championship game.
Fans starting lining up about an hour and half before tip-off for a chance to see the Seahawks battle for a region championship and a potential trip to the state’s Final Four and while they weren’t disappointed by the heart and courage showed by the Decatur girls, they were left feeling a little empty by the outcome. Decatur led most of the way before the game, and the regional championship, slipped away in the final minute, but the loss did little to tarnish what was, by all accounts, a memorable season.
The Seahawks led 27-25 at the half and expanded their lead to 38-35 by the end of the third quarter. Glenelg continued to chip away in the back-and-forth contest which wouldn’t be decided until the final horn. Decatur led 44-42 with under a minute remaining when Glenelg banked home a three-pointer to take a 45-44 lead.
Decatur’s all-time leading scorer Dayona Godwin drove to the basket, but the ball was knocked away. Rachel Florek got a shot with around six seconds remaining, but it wouldn’t drop. After the Decatur defense tied up Glenelg, forcing a five-second violation, Florek inbounded the ball to Savannah Schultz, who got a jumper off with time winding down but it hit the front of the rim. Amaya Mumford scooped up the rebound and attempted a put back, but it was not meant to be and Glenelg held on for the 45-44 win and the regional championship.
Despite the heartbreaking loss, the Seahawks held their heads high on what was a remarkable season. Decatur went 22-4 overall, their only regular season loss coming to rival Pocomoke back on December 21. The Seahawks dropped a pair during the Governor’s Challenge holiday tournament in December, then reeled off 17 straight wins before falling to Glenelg in the region title game.
The season was also memorable for senior guard Dayona Godwin, who set the school’s new scoring record and then obliterated. Godwin scored 31 points against Crisfield to reach 1,508, surpassing the previous record of 1,494 set by Elise Mercer in 2005. Godwin scored her 2,000th point against Kent Island in the Bayside Conference championship game in February, won by the Seahawks, 52-38, and continued to add to her total throughout the state playoffs. Godwin scored 24 points, or nearly half her team’s total in the regional championship game.
In the 3A-East regional, Decatur was the top seed in Section II and breezed through its first two games to reach the regional championship. The Seahawks beat Hammond, 53-37, in its opener, then beat Chesapeake, 61-54, in the section final to reach the region championship game.