The girls basketball team (15–2) fell to the Churchill Bulldogs (15–1) Monday 59–48. This was the teams first loss since playing Holy Child on Dec. 11.

The Vikes and the Bulldogs are both ranked in the top 20 by The Washington Post, and they were thirteenth and fifteenth going into the game, respectively. This is the second time the teams have faced each other this season, with a buzzer beater victory for the Vikes for a score of 40–39 in January.

“I felt pretty good because we had already beaten them before, but it was really exciting to be able to play them on our home court” guard Anna Krush said. “I was pretty sure they were going to come out really strong because they were mad about losing last time.”

The Vikes got off to a slow start with the Bulldogs taking an early lead that they held for the rest of the first half. The Vikes struggled to keep the ball on offense, and the Bulldogs dominated the offensive rebounds which gave them more scoring opportunities.

At the end of the first half, the Vikes were down 30–23, which was less than the 30–16 deficit they had against Churchill a few weeks ago.

During the second half, Churchill kept hold of their lead. The Vikes’ defense had difficulty containing the Bulldogs’ leading scorer, Brittini Martin, who totaled 31 points. Guard Elyse Lowet led the team in scoring with 14 points and four three-pointers, but the Vikes couldn’t match Churchill’s offense as the game progressed.

“Everyone was frustrated with how we played. We knew we made lots of mistakes, especially ones that we don’t normally make,” Krush said. “It’s a really good learning lesson, especially since we’re probably going to play them in playoffs.”

The team next faces the Richard Montgomery Rockets Friday at 7:15 at Richard Montgomery High School.