Girls Night Out at Goose Creek: Backcourt Beasts

As of late, basketball activity has been limited to single games typically taking place on Tuesday and Friday. When the academic calendar arrives at winter break, that will have an effect on the basketball schedule where it will become much busier.    One exception to this took place this past weekend in the Lowcountry at 5A Division 2 Goose Creek as it was the site of this year's Girls Night Out Showcase. Alongside the host Gators, it also welcomed 1A Military Magnet, 3A Keenan, 4A schools Gray Collegiate and Camden, 5A Division 1 schools Ashley Ridge and Ridge View and SCISA 4A First Baptist.    We at Prep Girls Hoops also made the trek down to Goose Creek for the day's quartet of contests. After putting a lens on who made their presences known from the frontcourt, we shift our attention to standout guards from the day's play.    The War Eagles of 4A Gray Collegiate have had a stellar start to its 2025-26 campaign and the 11 points that Gartmon placed on the scoreboard against a tough SCISA 4A out in First Baptist continued the superb play coach Brandon Wallace's team has had. One can place Gartmon in a team's lineup at either of the guard spots in the backcourt. A 3-point shot is part of her overall offensive arsenal but she particularly makes things difficult for opposing defenses with the speed and quickness she has when attacking the rim. The skilled sophomore will also corral her fair share of rebounds.     Those that have observed Pojani so far in 2025-26 have seen her put up some eye-popping statistics this season. Pojani may not have had one of those types of games against a tough 4A out in Gray Collegiate, but she still willed her team with 11 points against the War Eagles. Many a guard has the ability to handle the ball – there are few that do so with the speed and quickness that Pojani brings to the court. She looks to make plays on both offense and defense and the attention she can garner from defenses can open things up for her teammates to make plays.     The mark of how talented a prospect is can be seen in how said player performs against top-tier competition. Moore did that on Saturday afternoon at Goose Creek. Against one of the premier 4A teams in Gray Collegiate, Moore tallied 14 points to lead First Baptist, displaying why the Hurricanes are one of the premier 4A SCISA assemblings. She is a two-sport athlete who also plays soccer alongside her basketball achievements. Given her ability to run an offense, rim-attacking capabilities and willingness to draw contact to get to the free throw line, one can see that she has more experience than the typical junior – she has played at the varsity level since she was a middle schooler.     As Saturday's contest between First Baptist and Gray Collegiate wore on, Pouyat made more of her presence known. A hard-fought contest between the two teams may have gone the way of the War Eagles, but the 11 points placed on the scoreboard by the Hurricanes' multi-talented senior guard kept SCISA 4A First Baptist in the contest from start to finish. Pouyat displays her toughness with consistency and also has no problems attempting long-range shots against taller defenders. She has no problems drawing contact that can place her at the free throw line and will find attacking lanes to the basket.     In a close contest such as the one between Gray Collegiate and First Baptist, every point counts. The clash of 4A teams went the way of the War Eagles and the seven points placed on the board by Freeman made a notable difference. As someone who primarily plays at the point, she thrives as an attacker of the basket and will find driving lanes to the rim. Freeman can get herself in position to corral her fair assortment of rebounds. Defensively, Freeman is a consistent threat to collect plenty of steals which translate into additional offensive possessions for her team.     The second matchup on the four-game day included a contest of 5A Division 1 combatants. It was all Ridge View, all the time as evidenced by the Blazers' 55-31 victory over the Swamp Foxes of Ashley Ridge. Foster led the Blazers' stampede with 12 points. She displays her fearlessness with her willingness to attack even if a sea of opposing defenders are waiting for her in the paint. Foster also gives a 3-point shooting dimension to a team's offensive efforts. Rebounding is also a strong point of her game as is ball-handling and making plays in transition. Foster is one of four juniors on this season's Blazers version.     The developing core at 5A Division 1 Ridge View includes a pair of multi-talented freshman set to establish themselves as faces of Blazers basketball for the next several seasons. Ridge View put together a 24-point, 55-31 victory over fellow 5A Division 1 team Ashley Ridge. Ferguson tallied 11 points in the victory. As someone who has played at the varsity level since her seventh-grade year, she has more experience than a typical freshman. In addition to the crooked numbers Ferguson can put on a scoreboard, she understands when the right times are to score and when to pass, will get herself in position to grab rebounds and can collect steals to create additional offensive possessions for her team.     Coach Nathaniel Taylor has developed many a player over the years to have them primed for state success. Smith appears to be one of those names for 1A Military Magnet. Smith's Eagles matched up against 3A Keenan in the third of four contests at Girls Night Out and Smith's nine points helped massively in what was. Military Magnet rout of the Raiders. Smith consistently plays with a heads-up attitude and understands the art of delivering strong finishes at the rim. When watching Smith play, one may think she is at least a sophomore but Smith is in the throes of her eighth-grade campaign with the Eagles.     For the most part, Lee-Sutton's Keenan had a rough go of things against Military Magnet. She still did all she could for her 3A Raiders against the Eagles with 20 points in what was a 74-46 result. Even in the loss, it was a milestone night out for Lee-Sutton as the sophomore reached the 1,000-point plateau for her career. Lee-Sutton is a multi-talented 2028 who has more experience than a typical sophomore since she first played in the varsity ranks as a seventh grader. She can score at all three levels, can get into position to haul in rebounds and is a consistent threat to collect steals. Speed, quickness and handling the ball with her left hand are other strong points to her well-developed skillset.     When looking at this year's roster for 1A Military Magnet, one will notice that four of the 11 players are either eighth or seventh graders. Brown, who was part of last season's championship-winning Eagles team, is back for her eighth-grade season and finished with eight points as part of a Military Magnet blowout of 3A Keenan. One of the two 2030s on this year's Eagles team. Brown is more of a pure point guard and this is seen with how her ability to take care of the ball and limit turnovers translate into attacking and finishing strong at the rim.     Dates' emergence as one of the premier freshmen in the Palmetto State has her Goose Creek team firmly in the 5A Division 2 contenders' chat. The fourth matchup of Saturday's Girls Night Out featured her Gators and the Bulldogs of 4A Camden. Dates, who recently landed offers from Clemson and Charleston Southern, concluded her evening with 20 points. Out of the 20 she scored, 12 occurred in the first half of play. For the most part, the contest took on an up-tempo feel and Dates displayed how much she thrives in that type of matchup. Dates understands how to organize an offense in a half court set and can put points on the board from all three levels.     Jefferson is one of three on this season's 4A Camden team that share team captaincy duties. When a coach appoints one team captain, on-court leadership by example is expected and Jefferson delivered in what was a hard-fought contest between the Bulldogs and 5A Division 2 host Goose Creek. She scored 14 points in the 63-56 decision against the Gators. Jefferson can get downhill quickly with the ball in her hand and those occasions typically result in strong finishes at the rim. A 3-point shot is also part of her overall skillset and she can turn defense into offense by putting her speed and length to good use.     Jacobs emerged as a name to watch for 5A Division 2 Goose Creek last season and is continuing her stellar performances for the Gators this season. A nine-point outing from Jacobs ensured that Goose Creek was within striking distance of is 4A Camden adversaries from the opening tip to the final buzzer. Jacobs managed to come through with a clutch play late that preserved the Gators' chances of winning when she completed an old-fashioned 3-point play. Prior to that, she connected on 3-point baskets the more modernly conventional way. Goose Creek drained four 3-pointers for Saturday night's game – two were from Jacobs.     Camden's margin of victory on Saturday night against 5A Division 2 Goose Creek was seven points. How many did Mungo finish with for her Bulldogs? Seven. Mungo is one of six juniors on this year's Camden team. She particularly proved to be effective in the transition game and that allowed her to deliver several strong finishes at the rim. Mungo is also one of three team co-captains on this year's Bulldogs team. She has played at the varsity level since she was in the seventh grade. Ball distribution, collecting steals and hauling in timely rebounds are other positive areas of the skillset this talented veteran guard brings to the court on a game-by-game basis.

As of late, basketball activity has been limited to single games typically taking place on Tuesday and Friday. When the academic calendar arrives at winter break, that will have an effect on the basketball schedule where it will become much busier.