![]() ![]() At that point, the biggest challenge was not necessarily talent or strategy. Floyd and assistant coach LouShar Robinson took over the program three years ago–1,000-point scoring Neumann graduate Shayna McNamee joined the staff this season–and started building up the program. That is exactly what Neumann has done the last three years. “They’re enjoying this moment, and you learn from it and you keep moving.” “There are lots of tears, but they worked hard to be here,” Floyd said. It also helps that Parlante, Weller and Niyah Tutler return next year as well as valuable reserves like Ella Ballard and Sophia Reid, among others. It was how this team did it which should inspire future teams. It’s not just that Neumann won a lot of games and took the program places it had never been. They end the season with no regrets either, knowing they did everything possible Saturday–and all season–to win every game in which they competed. But as the tears dry, they will be replaced by smiles when these players reflect on how far they came. Maybe the players do not believe it yet since everyone hates losing, especially at this stage. “That’s something to be feel really happy about.” “Neumann had always the reputation of being one of the worst teams when we started and now we’re leaving as one of the top teams in the state,” Tutler said after producing her fourth playoff double-double, going for 17 points and 10 rebounds. It happens, but the fact that one could envision Neumann having, not only won that game, but also going all the way to Hershey for the state championship, reveals the light years distance this program has come in a short time. The Knights simply had an unfortunate shooting performance despite many quality attempts. Neumann did not play a bad game, Saturday, either. Together, they scaled new heights, going to states last year and then breaking through walls throughout this memorable postseason run which produced a program record four wins. Junior Gigi Parlante arrived a year later and fellow starters Lizzie Weller and Niyah Tutler last season. Sheiana Tutler and Lily Reid started on that 1-21 team as freshmen which often played in front of sparse crowds. ![]() “I don’t know what will happen in the future, but this shows the progression over the years, to go from one win to being in the Final 8. Now we’ve put the program on the map and other teams will be looking for us,” Neumann coach Helena Floyd said. “Most people never really recognized Neumann for the girls’ basketball. ![]()
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