Leesburg, Va. — During her freshman and sophomore seasons, Tuscarora guard Isabellah Middleton played alongside her older sister, Kennedy. In both of her first two high school seasons, Middleton earned All-LoCo honorable mention nominations while her sister Kennedy earned first team honors.
Then in 2018-2019, Middleton got an opportunity to shine on her own, taking her game to the next level. During her junior campaign, she posted 17 double-doubles while averaging 25 points and 11 rebounds per game. Her effort earned her the Cheers and LoCoSports All-LoCo Player of the Year award.
“We expect Bellah to be a solid leader on and off the court,” first-year Tuscarora head coach Alexis Campbell said. “We have a lot of young girls, and she’s already done a great job of leading them and putting them in the best place to succeed. She’s been very consistent in wanting to be the leader and wanting this to be a team thing.”
[adrotate group=”5″]Not only will Middleton’s senior season be a team thing, it will once again be a sister thing.
Just a freshman, Grace Middleton has already made a splash, scoring 13 points and adding 6 rebounds in her varsity basketball debut.
However, Isabellah wasn’t about to let her younger sister win their competitive sibling rivalry that easily. So the reigning VHSL 5A State first team guard scored 17 points, grabbed 6 rebounds, dished out 3 assists, and collected 8 steals in the Huskies’, 47-25, win over Freedom on December 2 in Leesburg.
“They’re very competitive,” Campbell said. “They really push each other which also creates that edge that we need.”
That edge helped the Huskies jump out to an early lead against the Eagles, who graduated most their core group in 2019, including three first team All-LoCo guards.
Grace led the first half scoring effort for Tuscarora as the Huskies took a 20-9 lead into the half.
“I’d seen Bellah and Kennedy together, but Grace brings a different dynamic. She plays a completely different game,” Campbell said. “She has a strong head on her shoulders. She stands up for herself, and even as a freshman, she leads in different ways.”
Out of the half, Isabellah showed why she’s one of the most feared players in Loudoun County, scoring 14 of her team-high 17 points in the third quarter alone.
As Tuscarora continued to pull away, Freedom senior Brenna Haley – a returning All-LoCo forward – did all she could to keep the Eagles’ hopes alive, scoring a game-high 18 points, while adding a game-high 11 rebounds.
Haley and the Eagles will have their work cut out for them in the Potomac District, while the Middleton sisters will battle for the top spot in the Dulles District after reclassifying this fall.
“I’m really surprised by our quick chemistry in a good way,” Campbell said. “As far as energy and the girls’ communication, that’s usually really hard to find, but to have it so early in the season, it gives us a lot of hope for what the rest of the season could look like.”
Derrick Jerry captured 140+ photos at the game…
Tuscarora Stats
| Tuscarora | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Steals | Blocks | Free Throws |
| Isabellah Middleton | 17 | 6 | 3 | 8 | 0 | 2-for-6 |
| Grace Middleton | 13 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2-for-2 |
| Camryn Worley | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2-for-3 |
| Lea Lesho | 4 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2-for-3 |
| Aniaya Knight | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Lillian Scheivert | 2 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2-for-2 |
| Madison Raborg | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Shaylen Rivera-Jones | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Alyssa Grosch | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Huskies Totals | 47 | 25 | 5 | 21 | 0 | 10-for-16 |
Freedom Stats
| Freedom | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Steals | Blocks | Free Throws |
| Brenna Haley | 18 | 11 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2-for-6 |
| Hannah Clark | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-1 |
| Keeleigh Devitt | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Morgan Koeneke | 1 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1-for-3 |
| Grace Farrar | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1-for-2 |
| Emily Maier | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1-for-2 |
| Marielle Thyen | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-2 |
| Grace FitzGerald | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0-for-2 |
| Eagles Totals | 25 | 27 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 5-for-18 |