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In a thrilling showdown at the Sumter County Civic Center, the Wardlaw Academy girls basketball team emerged victorious, clinching their first South Carolina Independent School Association state championship title since 2009. The Patriots triumphed over their fierce rivals, Richard Winn Academy, with a close 43-39 win on Friday night.
“It’s like a dream come true,” expressed Kristina Spurlock, who is in her 12th year as head coach. Having previously secured two state championships as a player for Wardlaw, she added, “It feels amazing to bring another one home.”
The game began with Wardlaw trailing throughout the first half, finding themselves at a disadvantage of up to 16 points at one stage. However, they managed to narrow the gap to just seven points by halftime.
“Nerves definitely played a part,” Spurlock reflected. “We were jittery initially, and our opponents seemed to hit every shot. Basketball is all about momentum swings. We called a timeout to break their rhythm, and remarkably, they only managed two points for the rest of that quarter.”
Wardlaw’s resurgence in the second half was impressive, as they outplayed Richard Winn with a 26-15 scoring run to secure the championship. Seniors Katherine Trotter and Taylor Hill shone brightly, contributing 17 and 15 points, respectively. Their outstanding performances earned them spots on the All-Tournament Team.
“Honestly, it’s overwhelming”, Hill said while still clutching the championship trophy. “We’ve worked so hard for this. I think tonight we just worked as one and came together and played the best we could play”.
“It means everything,” Spurlock said. “We built this foundation of a solid program and the fruit fell for us today. We had a hard start, but man those girls – they work so hard and they gave it their all. That’s what I needed from them.”
The Patriots avenged three regular season losses to Richard Winn and, after advancing to the Final Four two seasons ago and the state championship game in 2025, got to cut down the net. For Spurlock, it’s just the beginning.
“They continue to grow together and the cool thing is that it doesn’t just end here,” she said. “We get to keep on keep going.”