Paint Branch Ends Unbeaten

Paint Branch 74, Atholton 39

Atholton's Elie Snyder is double-teamed by Paint Branch's Ashleigh Council and Chandel Brown. "It truly is an unbelievable feeling," Panthers Coach Heather Podosek said. (By Mark Gail -- The Washington Post)

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By Jeff Nelson

Special to The Washington Post
Sunday, March 16, 2008; Page D14

CATONSVILLE, March 15 -- On paper, Paint Branch had one deficiency this season: a lack of height. Otherwise, the Panthers had it all: The ability to score in the half court or on the run; the players to attack inside or out; the athleticism to pressure the ball anywhere; the poise to play better as the games meant more.

In the end, no 6-footers were needed. The Panthers were perfect.

Second-ranked Paint Branch completed an undefeated season and captured the Maryland 3A girls' basketball championship last night by beating No. 18 Atholton, 74-39, at RAC Arena on the UMBC campus.

"This is a great team," said Panthers junior forward Khalilah Quigley, who had 14 points and 13 rebounds. "Even though we're not really big, we have great guards and small forwards that would play out of position to try to get rebounds and box out, and we have a pretty good bench and everybody contributes in their own special way."

Everyone contributed as Paint Branch (25-0) turned a tense contest into a prolonged celebration with a 21-1 run spanning the third and fourth quarters. Atholton (22-6) trailed by three points early in the second half, but the Panthers pushed their advantage to nine and then put together their run, which featured a flurry of steals and fast-break baskets. Many of them came courtesy of junior guard Tarik Hislop (23 points, eight rebounds) and freshman guard Brene Moseley (17 points).

By the middle of the fourth quarter, only time stood between Paint Branch and the program's fourth state title (1979, 1980, 2001, 2008).

This one was particularly sweet for the Panthers' two seniors -- forward Michelle Tabisz and guard Ashleigh Council -- as well as Paint Branch Coach Heather Podosek.

Including this season, Podosek's 12 campaigns with the Panthers have included 11 appearances in region finals, seven appearances in state semifinals and four appearances in state finals. But before last night, her only state title came in 2001.

"It truly is an unbelievable feeling," Podosek said. "It takes more than just having a lot of talent to win this. It takes some luck."

Atholton, which won last year's 2A championship, moved up a classification this season and proved it belonged with its run to the title game.

"We knew there were tough teams in [3A] and we knew it would be a struggle and we just had to put our whole hearts in it to get here," said Raiders senior Elie Snyder, who had a team-high 22 points. "I think we had a great season, and I don't think this game showed anything about what we did this whole season."

Paint Branch led from the start and held a 19-12 advantage after one quarter. Midway through the second quarter, the Panthers' lead reached nine on a basket from Moseley. But Snyder scored Atholton's next seven points to help the Raiders cut their deficit to 28-23 by halftime.

"It's my first time ever having an undefeated season," Hislop said, "and winning a championship feels real good."