By Mark Trible
FauquierNow.com Sports Editor
Liberty’s girls basketball team defeated visiting Kettle Run, 56-33, Tuesday in the first round of the Evergreen District tournament.
The Eagles used a dominating first quarter to advance to the district final and give coach Lauren Milburn her 100th career win.
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Photo/Mark Trible
Coach Lauren Milburn (with ball) celebrates her 100th career victory with the Eagles on Tuesday night.
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Liberty started the game 9-of-9 from the field and forced seven Kettle Run turnovers in the first period. The Eagles used seven of guard Liz Wood’s team-high 21 points to build a commanding 25-2 lead at the end of the first period.
“This was coach’s 100th win, so all day we were hyped,” Wood said. “And we’re finally at districts, she keeps stressing how much we need to focus on the fundamentals.”
Kettle Run trailed by as many as 40 points in the second half. The Cougars outscored Liberty, 21-4, in the fourth quarter.
Cougar Coach Sarah Ventresco was proud of her team’s effort to narrow the final margin.
“We had three seniors out there and a group of kids with a lot of heart,” Ventresco said. “We wanted to make it as hard on Liberty as we could tonight.”
Kettle Run finished 4-18 on the season, but Ventresco thinks the program is improving.
“We did some good things this year,” she said. “Our record doesn’t really reflect what we achieved but we did a lot for the program and I’m extremely proud.”
Tuesday’s game marked the 21st consecutive win for Liberty after starting the season 0-1. The Eagles had all the looks of a team hungry for its second straight state title.
Milburn, who coached at Osbourn in Manassas before coming to Liberty, was just relieved to get the 100-win festivities out of the way.
“It’s cool and kinda fun to hit the milestone,” she said. “But it’s not really what my focus is.
“Today was over the top. I got 100 cotton balls in my desk drawer, 100 e-mails from my (social studies) department, 100 balloons in my classroom, 100 of everything. It was nice of everyone, but I’m glad we got the playoff win and we’re headed to the final game.”
Liberty will face Warren County, which defeated Brentsville Tuesday 33-30, in Thursday’s district title game. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. in Bealeton.
The Eagles defeated the Wildcats in both meetings this season, 61-28 and 52-32.
As the regular season district champion, Liberty already has a berth in the regional tournament.
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