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The Prince Edward Lady Eagles have been fighting sickness for a couple weeks, with players in and out of the lineup. As a result, heading into Tuesday night’s regional playoff game, Prince Edward Head Coach Howard Paras said we hadn’t seen the team at their best yet. On Tuesday, everyone got a glimpse of what that looks like. In a dominating performance that they controlled from the opening tip, Prince Edward beat Southampton 105-9. 

“The girls are healthy and they were very focused,” Paras said. “We got contributions from everyone last night.” 

One at a time, the shots just kept falling. The Lady Eagles had four players score in double figures, with 10 overall on the scoreboard. Senior Jayla Boyd led all scorers with 21 points on the night. She was followed by 18 from junior Aliyah Rachels, 15 from freshman Kamiya Killibrew and 11 from sophomore Keshawna Peaks. Also contributing on the night was freshman Kyla Barkdale with 7, senior McKenna Vogel with 6, junior Maddie Tillerson with 6 and junior Anysha Clark with 7. Bella Arbatelle put up 6 on the night, with Amahri Miller adding 3. 

While everyone points to the offensive show Prince Edward put on Tuesday night, their defense was even better. They limited the Indians to just three points in the first quarter and seven overall by halftime. The second half was even better, as Southampton only scored two points after halftime, a jumper by Zanyah Wyche in the third.

The whole game highlighted something that Paras has made the centerpoint of this team’s identity. It’s all about defense. On any given night, he told The Herald last week, Paras wants the Lady Eagles to be the most aggressive defensive team on the court. That includes competing for jump balls, fighting to control the inbounds passes and in general making it hard for the other team to get off a shot. 

Prince Edward Lady Eagles driven 

That was certainly the case Tuesday night. Giving up just nine points may not be a record, but it showed the dominance this team can bring. There are two things driving that focus. First, the returning players remember how they were one quarter away from a state playoff spot last year and are determined to not let that happen again. And second, Paras won’t let the team drift or wonder about ‘what if’. It’s all about one game at a time. 

So what happens next? As the No. 1 seed in the regional tournament, Prince Edward moves on to the semi-finals and sets up the potential for a “revenge” game. Last year, John Marshall High eliminated the Lady Eagles in the regional championship. The No. 3 seed this year, John Marshall beat Arcadia 91-27 last night. They’ll take on the No. 7 seed, Bruton, which beat Greensville County 65-56. The winner of that game will face the winner of Prince Edward vs. Poquoson. The No. 4 seeded Islanders beat Amelia County to earn their spot in the semi-finals 63-47 earlier this week. 

The Prince Edward Lady Eagles will play Poquoson on Thursday, Feb. 27 at home. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.