WINDSOR, Conn. — Loomis Chaffee's dynastic reign atop NEPSAC Class A continues.
Despite the unrelenting hustle of second-seeded Sacred Heart, the top-seeded Pelicans were undeterred in Sunday's 51-45 championship victory. They secured their fourth consecutive Class A championship behind a signature balanced effort, with tournament MVP Alicia Mitchell's 12 points leading three players in double figures.
"I say this all the time, and it's hard for me to put into words: I am extremely fortunate. No coach should be (this lucky) to coach a team as selfless as that," Loomis Chaffee coach Adrian Stewart said.
Loomis Chaffee and Sacred Heart represent two of the best defenses in Class A, and the first half became a battle between Sacred Heart's high-motor guards and the size, length and discipline of the Pelicans defense. Stewart praised Sacred Heart and coach Ayo Hart for being a consistently frustrating opponent.
MORE NEPSAC TITLES: AAA — Tilton | AA — Worcester Academy | B — Rivers
"What they do really, really well is that, with their lack of size, they neutralize our size with their hustle," Stewart said. "You can see that they compete and fight for everything, and we had to match that."
The two sides traded buckets early; then Aisha Salem Hassan started to heat up for Sacred Heart. The 2025 transfer guard from Egypt drilled a 3-pointer and a slick up-and-under layup as part of her seven second-quarter points. Sacred Heart led 19-14 when Aniyah Neal responded for the Pelicans, knocking down a pair of 3s from each corner. That sparked a 9-2 run to give Loomis a 23-21 halftime edge.
The second half challenged what each team would concede. When Sacred Heart overhelped on defense against Pelicans center Alicia Mitchell, the ball swung to Abby Congdon for a 3-pointer. When Loomis Chaffee sagged off to contain Sacred Heart's drives, Eva Wilkerson and Lucianna Parrotta canned 3s of their own.
At a 32-32 tie in the third quarter, the Pelicans made their push. Another Congdon 3-pointer and Neal floater highlighted nine straight points, and a Leah McKenzie corner 3 gave Loomis a 44-33 third quarter lead. To Stewart, that game-shifting run was about taking care of the details in every possession.
"We need a stop and a basket — just one stop, one basket — and then breaking down the stop into little bite-sized chunks," he said. "We need a great closeout. We need great communication. Just win one little thing at a time."
Loomis brought the gap up to 47-33 before Sacred Heart mounted its final comeback attempt. Parrotta fed Hassan for a wing 3-pointer out of the middle of her team's offense, then Hassan swiped a backcourt steal and returned it for a layup — part of an 11-0 run that nearly brought Sacred Heart back from the brink. But the surge came too late.
Stewart said his group's collective selflessness powers the four-peat. Mitchell, a Columbia-bound senior, scored her team-high 12 and asserted her size at center despite battling foul trouble all game. When Neal (11 points) heated up, the Pelicans spotlighted her. When Congdon (10 points) started feeling it in the third quarter, her teammates got her involved.
It allows the Pelicans to run back talented rosters year after year, never letting up as they accumulate trophies.
"We have a bunch of kids who could be starting, and there's no infighting," Stewart said. "There's no jealousy. It's just, they care about the team."
