ON POINT: Stuart Country Day School basketball player Leila Washington dribbles upcourt in a game earlier this season. Last Sunday, sophomore Washington scored 25 points to help fourth-seeded Stuart defeat fifth-seeded Princeton Day School 46-36 in the opening round of the state Prep B tournament. The Tartans, who moved to 7-5 with the win, host Randolph on February 10 and then resume action in the Prep B tourney by playing at top-seeded Pennington on February 12 in the semifinals. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

Leila Washington was part of the supporting cast last season for a Stuart Country Day School basketball team that featured a core of senior standouts.

Learning some important lessons from those veterans, sophomore guard Washington has stepped into a leadership role this winter for Stuart.

“We had four D-1 players last year, so I had a lot to learn and to soak in,” said Washington. “I am trying to be a leader for the team and just trying my best. I just try to keep the positivity up. Whether we are up 50 or down 50, you want to stay in that same game mode, always imagine that is it 0-0.”

Last Sunday, Washington displayed her leadership and skill, tallying 25 points as fourth-seeded Stuart defeated fifth-seeded Princeton Day School 46-36 in the opening round of the state Prep B tournament. The Tartans, who moved to 7-5 with the win, will play at top-seeded Pennington in the Prep B semis on February 12.

With Stuart having won three straight state Prep B titles from 2018-20 before the tourney was canceled last year due to COVID-19  concerns, the Tartan players were excited to be back in postseason play.

“It was a great experience,” said Washington. “We definitely wanted to take the opportunity and try our best. It was really fun.”

The Tartans had fun from the start, jumping off to an 11-2 lead over PDS, utilizing a stifling defense.

“This game we were mainly focusing on defense, that was our offense basically,” said Washington. “As long as we didn’t let them score, we were in good shape and we really just focused on that.”

As for her scoring, Washington focusing on driving in the first half, hitting five free throws as she drew fouls. In the second half, Washington heated up from the perimeter, draining four 3-pointers.

“It was just attacking the basket and getting fouls,” said Washington, reflecting on her first half approach as she scored nine points to help the Tartans build an 18-14 halftime lead.

“In the third quarter, I was making them so it was just keep on shooting.”

After PDS narrowed the gap to 26-22 midway through the third quarter, Stuart broke open the contest with a 15-0 run.

“It was keeping up the energy, sometimes we have some slumps,” said Washington. “This game was hyped.”

Over the offseason, Washington put a lot of energy into improving her game.

“I worked on everything,” said Washington. “Since I am going to bring the ball up the most this year, I worked on any ball-handling. It will help me when I attack the basket and be able to create shots.”

Stuart head coach Justin Leith is thrilled with the work he has been getting from Washington.

“I think that is the most threes I have seen her hit in a game, she had four,” said Leith.

“She was tremendous, she was a huge part of why we won. She stepped up in that leadership role and it was great. I haven’t seen a jump like that since I have been coaching, going from not playing much to a team leader the following year.”

Leith liked the way Stuart jumped on the Panthers in the opening minutes of the contest.

“We made a decision last week in practice that we are not going to get much out of our half-court offense,” said Leith. “Most of our points are going to be from defense and we will rely on that to score which we did so that was good.”

The defensive emphasis sparked the pivotal 15-0 second half run.

“It was all defense, we relied on our defense,” added Leith.

“We pressured the entire game, we felt that it would wear on them over the course of the game.”

Coming through in its return to Prep B tourney was sweet for a Stuart squad featuring a bevy of new faces.

“We are back with a much different looking team,” said Leith, whose team will host Randolph on February 10 to tune up for its Prep B semifinal clash with Pennington.

“It was a competitive game, we knew it would be going into it, watching film. It is awesome. All the coaches said how proud of them we were. We knew it was going to be a tough game, they are a rival across the street. It was good.”

Leith is proud of the growth his players have displayed this winter. “It is individual and collective confidence and it is gained through experience and playing more minutes,” said Leith.

“This is such a young, inexperienced team that a majority of them haven’t had that before.”

With the Tartans having lost 61-40 to Pennington in their season opener on December 7, Leigh is viewing the rematch as a measuring stick of how far his team has come this winter.

“That is exactly what we said after our first game with them,” said Leith. “Let’s see where we stand later in the season and how much growth we have had so we are excited for that.”

While Washington is excited to get another shot at Pennington, she is keeping things simple. “We just try our best and see what happens,” said Washington.