It’s not uncommon to see a school dominate their opponents in either girls or boys basketball. But it is rare to see one school thrive in both, especially during the same season. Sidwell Friends, a Quaker day school in Washington, DC, has managed to flex its basketball power through both genders so far on the national stage in 2022.
Let’s begin with the boys team. After not playing during the 2020-2021 season, the Quakers rebounded strong with a 13-1 start to their campaign this school year. Their only loss came in an overtime upset to fellow Washington, DC school Archbishop Carroll. Despite the setback, Sidwell Friends has racked up some key victories. The Quakers defeated St. Andrew’s Episcopal, the third-ranked team in DC, 53-46, and also crushed No.4 McKinley Tech by 22. The Quakers put themselves on the national stage by defeating Grayson, a perennial power in the state of Georgia. Balanced scoring has been the key for Sidwell Friends’ boys basketball team. Four players average at least 8.9 points per game (PPG), and solid defense has allowed the Quakers to win while scoring only 59 PPG as a team. Sidwell Friends still have several games left in the regular season with a rematch against St. Andrew’s Episcopal likely to be the most challenging. The Quakers are currently ranked first in Washington, DC, and rightly so.
The girls basketball team is probably more impressive than the boys. At 11-0, the Quakers weren’t challenged score-wise all year until this past Saturday, when they defeated DeSoto (TX) 60-55. DeSoto is ranked No.2 in the entire nation, and the Quakers first matchup against them resulted in an 18-point demolition. Sidwell Friends also crushed St. Paul VI (VA) 69-40, and the Panthers are currently ranked No.18 nationally. That St. Paul VI team also made it to the GEICO National Finals in 2021. Just prior to the rematch against DeSoto, the Quakers took down No. 3 Hopkins (MN), 67-55. This team has solidified its status as the best girls basketball team in the nation, and much of that is thanks to Kiki Rice and Jadyn Donovan, who average a combined 31.1 PPG and 15.3 rebounds per game. No team has found a method for containing this dynamic duo yet, and the future doesn’t seem too promising for opponents.
When observing both Sidwell Friends basketball teams, one common theme emerges: they both play stifling defense to overcome potential offensive droughts. The girls team scored 60 or less points in four games, but still won with suffocating defense (allowing only 36.5 PPG in those games). The boys scored under 50 points in three games and still managed to win two of those matchups in the same fashion. While these genders of the same sport may differ greatly, the key to success has remained the same in 2022: defense.
