For the better part of a decade, the Jackson-Reed girls’ basketball team has seen fairly limited success. But recently, their momentum has begun to change.  

The Tigers have not won a DCIAA Championship since 2016, nor have they competed in the championship since 2019. Last year, they made it to a DCIAA semifinal where they lost to eventual champions Dunbar, and further advanced to the DCSAA Class A championship where they fell to Archbishop Carroll. Coach Derek Campbell spoke on the team’s chances this year, saying, “we have a very seasoned team from last year, even the freshmen and sophomores have been through the ringer already, so coming back this year we’re almost predestined to go, and a lot of people are picking us to go all the way.”

So far this year, the Tigers have already played a couple of games, starting the season off at the Flint Hill Tipoff. In the Tigers first time in the yearly invitational, they dominated Saint John Paul (Va.), before falling just short of a 25-point comeback to Episcopal, losing 74-69. “Playing in the Flint Hill Tipoff was good. We got to play some good out of league schools and we learned that we are a tough team, and if we are down we can come back,” said sophomore Michaela Jenkins.

After the Flint Hill Tipoff, the Tigers picked up a win at DCI on December 4th, followed by a big 66-47 win over Friendship Collegiate Academy on December 6th. Last year, the Tigers fell short 75-70 playing FCA at home, so the 19-point win against them shows just how far the team has come in the past year. “I think that win showed our improvement as a team, in how we worked together to get that win,” commented sophomore Lucia Nawar. “Even though it was a bit shaky, we still came together as a team and won.”

The Tigers take on reigning DCIAA champions, Dunbar, away on December 20, but they will face other DCIAA heavyweights, Banneker and Coolidge, at home on January 17 and February 2nd.

This season, the Tigers have been invited to the Battle in The Bull Holiday Invitational in Durham, North Carolina, giving the team the rare chance to travel. This is certainly a positive change, and the team believes it is the first of many opportunities. “My goal is to have our team be noticed a lot, like we got when we were invited to the North Carolina trip. I want us to get the recognition that we rightfully earned,” sophomore Aminyah Muhammed said.

To the untrained eye, it would appear that the young Tigers team is inexperienced, but that is far from the truth. This is especially important to coach Campbell, “the biggest thing for us is game experience, I don’t go by years, but by time in the game itself, in terms of AAU programs and development. We still have a seasoned group, and they understand the commitment that goes behind being winners.”

Although a majority of players on the team are underclassmen, it doesn’t take away from the importance of senior leadership. The two senior veterans, Kryslynn Stewart and Gabriela Eversley-Holland, were selected as team captains for this year. “Our input is taken into consideration a lot more this year,” said Eversley-Holland. “We have our leadership roles ahead of us. We have to communicate to our teammates and lead by example.”