Girls athlete of the week
// The Post-Gazette’s top female performer from the past seven days
The past week: Washington averaged 18 points and seven rebounds in three games. She had 17 points and eight rebounds against Central Valley Feb. 3, 11 points and seven rebounds against Ambridge Feb. 6 and 25 points and six rebounds against Montour Feb. 8. The Quakers finished the regular season with an overall record of 16-5 and a 8-4 mark in Class 4A Section 2.
Check this out: If her last name sounds familiar, it’s because Washington is a Quaker Valley legacy. Older brother Coletrane was a Post-Gazette Fab 5 selection and now is a key player for Drexel University. Congratulations on earning a playoff spot. How are postseason games compared to the regular season? It’s just a different level of competition. If you lose, you’re done. It’s all or nothing.
What’s the key to a deep playoff run? I definitely think defense plays a big role in that. Coach [Tom Demko] says offense comes from defense and I honestly believe in that. Keeping them under what they normally score really screws them up.
At what point did you think this team could be really good? I guess when we beat Moon [Dec. 10, when Washington posted 31 points and sank the winning free throws for a 56-55 win] when it went into triple overtime. That was a real test. Is “Quakers” an intimidating nickname? Absolutely not [laughs]. You hear Quakers you think of the old guy on the oatmeal.
What has it been like to have your older brother star at Quaker Valley and then follow in his footsteps? For so long I’ve been known as Coltrane’s little sister, so I’m trying to make a name for myself.
Is there a friendly competition between girls and boys programs at Quaker Valley? We definitely root for each other. This is new, I guess, because the girls haven’t always been as good as the boys. We like to tell them we had the same record this year. (The boys were also 16-5 through Sunday).
What’s the best way to get pumped up for a big game? Listen to music in the locker room.
Our teammates will bring a speaker and get pumped for the game. We listen to a lot of corny songs.
Got any pregame superstitions? I’ll usually roll my socks a certain way. The swoosh has to be a certain way and I never pull them up too high.
If you have another triple-overtime game during the playoffs and it’s a long bus ride home, where do you stop for a meal? I’m going to have to say Sheetz and give a classic Pittsburgh answer.