COUDERSPORT — It wasn’t the way the Coudersport girls basketball team envisioned its PIAA quest ending.
Riding an 11-game win streak that included knocking off previously unbeaten North Clarion for the District 9 Class A championship, the Lady Falcons (23-4) felt they had plenty left to accomplish heading into the state quarterfinals.
But with the PIAA’s cancellation of all remaining winter championships and spring sports due to COVID-19 on Thursday, Coudersport will be left wondering what could have been. The Lady Falcons would have faced Kennedy Catholic in the Elite 8, and stood just two more wins from a state championship appearance.
Now, that’s as far as they’ll go.
The announcement was made after weeks of uncertainty during which the PIAA had twice postponed the resumption of its activities as school closures were initiated and then later extended. But when Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf closed schools for the remainder of the academic year on Thursday, no path forward on sports was feasible.
“I kind of expected it. The worst part is it being official,” junior forward Sarah Chambers, a Big 30 Second Team All-Star, said. “The whole time I had a tiny piece of hope. Originally, when they first announced (the suspension of games), I thought we’d still play. That’s when (the pandemic) wasn’t as big as it is now, so I thought it’d just be a long two weeks, but we’d get through it.
“(The team) talked about how we wanted to refocus, and we were planning and were ready to play again in two weeks. Once they canceled school, that’s when it really hit that we probably weren’t going to play again.”
As the news of the official cancellation was delivered, Chambers said the Lady Falcons reached out to each other to reflect on the season.
“In our group chat, I talked about how this team was one of the most special teams I’ve been on,” Chambers said. “We had such a close-knit bond that was unmatchable, and that’s what hurts the most. It was heartbreaking, and really heartbreaking for the seniors.”
Those seniors, while disappointed, delivered one positive message to the teammates they’re leaving behind: finish the job.
“I was really upset. I was thinking that we worked so hard to get here, and we can’t finish what we started,” said senior guard Mikayla Gunn. “The first thing I told my team was to finish what we never got to do.”
Gunn was one of four seniors on the team — along with Lauren Stimaker, Arianna Waterman and Justice Wlasniewski — and was playing her best basketball of the season during the District 9 and state playoffs, averaging 13.8 points per game over Coudersport’s five postseason matchups.
Though she is disappointed with the way things ended, Gunn does take some solace in ending her career on a high note.
“It felt really nice. I know during the regular season I was struggling, and then I got this confidence,” she said. “It felt nice doing so well.”
Gunn was also quick to express her gratitude to her teammates and coaches for all of their hard work and dedication to making the program better, and added that she wants her teammates to know “that they’re always capable of beating good teams or teams that they think are better as long as they work together.”
As a group, Coudersport’s seniors can take some consolation in the things the Lady Falcons accomplished during the 2019-2020 season. Coudy racked up its fifth consecutive North Tier League championship with a 16-0 league mark, and all four of the Lady Falcons’ losses during the year came to teams above their classification.
In addition, the Lady Falcons made their fourth consecutive trip to the PIAAs, and advanced out of the first round for the second time in that span and to the Elite 8 for the first time since 2004.
“I think this season is going to be a great season to be talked about in the future,” Chambers said.
The forward added that she’s experiencing conflicted emotions, as she’s pleased with all the success Coudy had during the season and happy to go out on a win, but disappointed they can’t continue.
“I think it’s a little bit of both. I’m happy we ended on a win, because the only other time to do that is as state champions, and I think it was good to do that,” Chambers said. “But I think it also does feel like it’s unfinished. We knew we had momentum and could have competed (against Kennedy Catholic)… I’m happy with what we accomplished, but angry, too.
“But it’s what had to happen, so we’ll just remember the good times instead of the what-ifs.”
