Mustangs Fourth Consecutive Bull Run Title was Bittersweet

Central Woodstock was the only Bull Run District team that beat George Mason High in the last four years.

The Falcons beat them 51-50 in January but the Mustangs had the last laugh Friday night in a 59-49 win in the Bull Run District Tournament championship game.

It was the Mustangs’ fourth consecutive Bull Run District regular season and tournament titles.

In comparison, the victory was secondary to Mason guard Leah Roth going down in the first quarter. The senior fell to the floor stopping play until she was carried from the court. The crowd erupted in applauds when Roth was carried from the floor.

The visibly shaken Mustangs, teary eyed and red-faced, returned to the floor without their leader. She was taken to a local hospital by Fairfax County Fire and Rescue. As she was taken out of the gym on a stretcher, the crowd stood and cheered, bringing a smile from Roth.

Mason officials did not know exactly what happened to Roth.

“This team is resilient,” Head Coach LeBryan Thomas said. “We’ve had our ups and downs but for the most part, we’re up.”

Thomas replaced his point guard with her little sister, freshman Ava Roth (5-points). Roth said it wasn’t hard because she knew she had the support of the team.

“When she went out I was obviously upset,” Roth said. “It was a good opportunity for me to get more experience at the position especially if that’s where I’ll play next season.”

The Falcons played Mason tight tying the game at 28-all in the third quarter before the Mustangs started to pull away. Two-time reigning Bull Run District Player of the Year Stephanie Cheney played tough in the paint grabbing rebounds and getting second shots. In the fourth quarter, Cheney (19-points) missed a layup, grabbed her own rebound and laid it in for the shot and was fouled. She missed the foul shot but that didn’t stop the crowd from yelling the chant: “You can’t stop her!”

“At the end of the night I felt we held our composure,” Cheney said. “From here on, every team is going to play us tough.”

Lauren Kane has been a member of three of the last four consecutive district champion teams. The senior was also awarded with first-team all-District honors after the game during an awards ceremony. She said emotions were running high for the team but the win helped ease the tension.

“It feels so nice because it’s my senior year,” Kane said, “but we did it as a team.”

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Leah Roth earned second-team all-District honors and little sister Ava Roth accepted the award in her absence. The younger Roth said she is looking forward to earning the honor one day herself.

Cheney and Kane were both named to the first-team all-District team and Thomas earned his fourth consecutive Coach of the Year award.

Julianna Rollo scored 9-points off the bench for the Mustangs. Kane scored 8-points in the game and sophomore Ashley Alexander added 6-points. Jaya Chavern scored 5-points off the bench.

The Mustangs start regional play Wednesday night at home.