As December draws to a close, the majority of students look forward to the holidays and winter break, savoring their free time, using it how they wish. For student athletes, there is not much of a winter break, including the Lady Raiders basketball team. Instead of sleeping in, the girls woke up early to attend practices and games. By sacrificing their time, the team was able to bond, making them closer on and off the court.

This translated into their play at Livingston’s Whitey Dukiet All-American Holiday Classic. In their first round against Cranford, junior Elissa Nsenkyire scored 14 points and freshman Morgan Hodorowskki added 10 points. The Lady Raiders took home a 51-43 win, moving onto the championship against Livingston. In the championship game, the top scorers were juniors Grace O’Connor and Allison Watson. O’Connor netted 10 points and Watson finished with 11 points. With the help of them and the rest of the team, Hillsborough won the championship 54-22.

“We played really well together, and it showed as we ended up winning the championship,” senior Gabriella Vangeli said.  “We had great ball movement, and our time together at practice resulted in a strong bond between us that showed on the court.”

After the holiday tournament, the Lady Raiders improved their record to 3-2. Upon coming back from break, the Lady Raiders faced off against West Windsor-Plainsboro North on Jan. 3, defeating them by a score of 49-41 with equal effort from all players. Come support the Lady Raiders at their next game on Jan. 5 against North Hunterdon at home at 5:00 p.m.