For the last few decades, basketball has been one of Millbrook’s most successful sports. With phenomenal girls playing under Coach Chris East for the last twenty years, Millbrook’s women’s team has seen a lot of success. This year has been no different as they have started off very strong. Entering the season as the defending 4-A State Champions, the team is North Carolina’s top ranked team according to Maxpreps. Many of the year’s veterans are aware of their ranking and are using it as motivation. The girls know after last year’s win in Chapel Hill that they have a target on their back even if they were not topping the polls. State Championship contenders all around the Tar Heel State are looking at Millbrook as the team to beat.

With six four-year varsity players in Kai Crutchfield, Dazia Powell, Zairya West, Sis Norman, Kiara Rochelle, and Andreal Bass, the team continues to fill the holes left by departed seniors. Their only weakness, if any, is their lack of towering bigs. Instead, the team plans to use their wit, athleticism, and skill to dominate their competition. Their experience playing together has also led to phenomenal chemistry. The players have developed very close relationships with one another, which is rare. This enables everyone to give and receive criticism without negatively affecting the team. Coach East says, “We break down each huddle with team, together, trust,” constantly reminding everyone that they can only reach their goals through working together. Millbrook’s girls’ hard work this year so far has kept them in the top three of the Cap-8, as well as major recognition in the local news.

NCSU commit Kai Crutchfield earned the WRAL Extra Effort Award in mid-December. The News & Observer has also placed Millbrook atop of their 17-county ranking the entire season. Old Dominion commit Dazia Powell scored her 1,000th career point against Australia’s Basketball Victoria team, adding yet another accomplishment to the team’s scorching start to the season. Norfolk State bound Zairya West and Morehead State bound Sisalynn Norman round out their quartet of Division-1 commits. To top it all off, Andreal Bass also made her commitment to Lenoir-Rhyne University in November.

The girls plan to carry their hot start this year all the way until the 2017 State Championship in March. A back-to-back championship feat in the 4-A conference would be an extremely tough accomplishment every player would love to have. Nobody on this team should be overlooked after their beginning of the season, and this team plans to make anyone doubting them regret it.