Vance County High School Head Basketball Coach Sheila Gill has gotten the Lady Vipers off to a great start, they’re on a 12-game win streak and sit atop the standings of the Northern 6 conference.
They took care of the Crossroads Christian in a non-conference matchup on Wednesday, beating the Lady Colts 57-23.
Before that, the Lady Vipers went on a three-game winning spree over the course of just five days. For Gill, now in her fifth year as a head coach, it’s all about playing with consistency.
“We knew the whole week was going to be tough,” Gill told WIZS’s Scout Hughes and Doc Ayscue, – her former coach – on Tuesday’s SportsTalk.
As part of a new conference, Gill said she’s told her players they’d have to prove themselves.
“I think they have,” she continued. She emphasizes the importance of taking it one game at a time, be competitive and don’t make things easy for the opponent.
VCHS Athletic Director and Assistant Principal Scott Corrente said the team has exceeded his expectations “in the best way possible.”
He pointed to the Jan. 16 game against Wake County’s Heritage High, which the Vipers won 57-54.
“We knew that Heritage game was going to tell us a lot about ourselves,” Corrente said. “When we got that, all of a sudden this target has been painted on this team’s back. We’re not a mystery team any more.”
The Vipers had been trailing in several conference games for the first three quarters, yet found a way to get the W.
Gill said it’s all about not giving up, and the Lady Vipers kept fighting to change the outcome in the final quarter of play.
Seniors Da’Shunti Hester and Nicola Thompson, both starters, provide more than just minutes. Hester has come back strong from an ACL tear that sidelined her at the beginning of the season.
And Thompson “is having her best year ever,” Gill said. “She’s doing amazing things that we knew she could do. Now, she’s just really blossoming as a senior.”
A couple of freshmen are stepping up, too. London Chadwell is a great athlete who doesn’t play like a freshman. “She understands her role for Vance County,” Gill said.
Ditto A’yana Harrington, who came in and scored 9 points in the Vipers big win over River Mill in the MLK Tournament in Alamance County.
“When she hit the floor, she gave everything,” Gill recounted, “diving for the ball, just playing hard, straight-up defense, not afraid to score.”
The Vipers are scheduled to play at East Wake on Tuesday, Jan. 27.
High School Basketball Scores from Tuesday – Boys
- Franklinton 75 Vance County 58
- Vance Charter 65 Oxford Prep 35
- Halifax Academy 70 Kerr-Vance 41
- New Garden 50 Crossroads Christian 49
- J.F. Webb 84 Carrboro 55
- South Granville 75 Cedar Ridge 49
- Warren County 59 Northampton County 23
- Eno River 66 Falls Lake 47
- Louisburg 41 ALA-Johnston 26
- Wake Prep 67 Bunn 57
High School Basketball Scores from Tuesday – Girls
- Vance County 53 Franklinton 49
- Vance Charter 38 Oxford Prep 26
- Halifax Academy 65 Kerr-Vance 6
- J.F. Webb 45 Carrboro 38
- South Granville 44 Cedar Ridge 35
- Warren County 64 Northampton County 23
- Falls Lake 71 Eno River 18
- Louisburg 49 ALA-Johnston 26
- Bunn 60 Wake Prep 47
Games on Wednesday – Boys
- Kerr-Vance vs. Cristo Rey
- Wake Prep vs. John Paul II
Games on Wednesday – Girls
- Kerr-Vance vs. Cristo Rey
- Wake Prep vs. John Paul II
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