Ashburn, Va. — Although their record does not necessarily reflect it, the Stone Bridge High School girls basketball team is capable of putting up big points. Despite a slow start to the season, the Bulldogs are finding their rhythm and proving they can hold their own in the competitive Potomac District after a pair of back-to-back double-digit wins. Looking to add to that success, Stone Bridge hosted Lightridge High School for a boys/girls double-header on February 2 in Ashburn.
After their boys team secured the 77-53 victory in the first varsity game of the night, the Stone Bridge girls team celebrated their seniors before taking the court against the visiting Lightning. With the exception of a few minutes early in the first quarter, the Bulldogs held the lead throughout and limited the Lightning—who were averaging over 52 points per game—to just 37 points, sealing the 61-37 win.
“We’ve had some injuries and other logistical things, so we’re finally getting the full team and the full roster to put it together, and tonight was a showing of what we can do,” Stone Bridge head coach Emily Thompson said. “We’ve been waiting for this for a long time, and it was nice to finally get it. Senior night brings a lot of emotion out of some kids that give it a little extra, but we gotta do this all the time.”
The Bulldogs opened the scoring after junior forward Ava Ryan (11 points, 15 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals) grabbed a couple rebounds and then assisted on a shot by senior forward Charlotte Borley (4 points, 2 rebounds).
Lightridge answered immediately as junior guard Gabby Dillard (12 points, 3 rebounds) converted on both of two consecutive Stone Bridge turnovers. Freshman forward Madison Webb (4 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists) then snagged a defensive and offensive rebound before putting the ball away to give the Lightning the 6-2 lead.
But that would be the only time Lightridge would hold the advantage. Stone Bridge sophomore guard Keeley Billings (20 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals) scored two, and then junior guard Sheila Suarez (15 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal) made a steal and an assist to Ryan on the next drive. A couple more Lightridge turnovers allowed both Suarez and Ryan to make it to the basket and swing the momentum to the Bulldogs’ side.
“It started with our ¾-court trap, and we were getting steals and tips and just getting them out of what they do,” Thompson said. “We’ve been playing better on defense recently, and controlling that side of the floor has been helping our offense get better.”
Suarez and Ryan—who recorded over half of her points in the first quarter en route to the game’s only double-double—both finished again, and after Ryan recorded a steal, she found Billings for another two.
“Ava is just a freak athlete. Whenever she’s on the floor, it’s just chaos for the other team when someone’s guarding her. She brings everyone’s level up because she’s one of the best competitors in this area,” Thompson said. “She handles the ball, finishes towards the basket, and is a complete player in that aspect. She does everything—rebounds, assists; she sees the floor—and it’s awesome to watch her on the court.”
Billings converted on a pair of free throws to cap a 16-0 Stone Bridge run to end the first quarter.
“It feels great. I’m happy to get the team win, and I’m excited I could [record a double-double]on senior night,” said Ryan, who plans to graduate in December 2026 to start her collegiate soccer career early. “We did a good job of getting to the basket, driving on them, getting under them, and perimeter work.”
To start the second quarter, Dillard cut the deficit to single digits after making a pair of baskets. Although Billings countered from outside the arc to double the Lightning up at 22-11, Lightridge junior guard Mikayla Bowe (6 points, 1 assist, 1 steal) made it to the basket in traffic and then scored again a few plays later to bring the score to 24-15. Sophomore guard Chloe Sombillo (8 points, 2 rebounds, 1 block) also got involved in the action by knocking down a three and splitting a pair of free throws to keep the Lightning within striking distance.
The Bulldogs were big on the glass, as Ryan recorded 6 of her game-high 15 rebounds to contribute to the 11 total Stone Bridge boards during the second quarter. Forcing 10 first-half turnovers, the Bulldogs also kept the pressure on and capitalized on second-chance opportunities.
“Defensively, I thought we did a great job holding them to only 37 points, and 61 is also the most points we scored all year,” Thompson said. “We were running the floor, we were taking it to the basket, shooting. It was nice to see a full game out of the girls.”
Whenever the Lightning knocked, Stone Bridge always seemed to have an answer, as Billings sank a couple free throws, and the Bulldogs ended the half on a 6-0 run behind baskets from the leading scorers—Suarez, Ryan, and Billings—to put them up 34-19 heading into the locker room.
“Keeley’s been leading us all season in almost every category. She’s a sophomore, but she’s like a senior out there with her maturity and leadership, and she works really hard. She’s a sleeper in a lot of people’s sense, but she’s been doing this all year; we just haven’t had the wins to support it,” Thompson said. “She’s a heck of a player, and she’s been our main key this year with Ava being the known assassin on defense and just causing havoc. Keeley gets to the basket and has been scoring so well for us all year long: free throw line, layups, jumpers. She goes one speed and it’s always hard.”
After only one triple apiece in the first half, both teams started the third quarter with a 3-pointer. Ryan found Suarez on the outside, and then Lightridge junior forward Ashley Hughes (1 point, 5 rebounds, 1 block) grabbed a few offensive rebounds before senior guard Jalyn Childress (6 points, 1 steal) finished from 3. After a Lightning turnover, Ryan once again found a teammate—this time Billings—outside the arc for 3.
“I always like to get my teammates involved,” Ryan said. “I think that’s how we’re gonna score the most baskets, and I have all the trust in my teammates that they’ll make the basket. So passing to them is always my first option, if it’s not 100% to the basket.”
After a Borley two extended the Bulldog lead to 20, Childress hit a deep three to make it 42-25. A couple made free throws from Suarez followed by back-to-back twos from Dillard and Billings brought the score to 46-27 heading into the final frame.
After forcing a couple Stone Bridge turnovers, Webb made a layup and Bowe converted on both free throws to make it 46-31. But Suarez and Ryan were quick to swing things the other way, as they both got inside to the basket. Billings then hit her fifth and sixth free throws to remain perfect on the night from the charity stripe and to once again extend the Bulldog lead to 20.
“We shot free throws really well. We’ve been working on that a lot,” Thompson said. “It could have gone one of two ways tonight, not practicing for a week. But maybe the break gave them a little extra time to rest and decompress and be ready to go, so it was awesome.”
Stone Bridge freshman forward Campbell Lee (6 points, 1 rebound) then came off the bench and knocked down back-to-back threes to give the Bulldogs their largest lead of the night at 59-33.
Despite a couple late baskets from Sombillo, the Lightning effort wasn’t enough to overcome the large lead Stone Bridge had built, as the Bulldogs captured the 61-37 victory.
“The energy we brought today we will need to carry that throughout the week and just work as a team and play how we know how to play,” Ryan said.
After a week-long break due to weather-related cancellations and postponements, both teams have a busy week in store. Stone Bridge (4-3, 6-8) and Lightridge (5-3, 11-7) will meet again on February 6 for a rematch in Aldie. But before that, the Bulldogs will travel to Briar Woods on February 4 and John Champe on February 5, and the Lightning will host Loudoun Valley on February 3 and travel to Riverside on February 5.
“We gotta be ready to go. Our district is really competitive, so any game, you don’t know what’s gonna happen,” Thompson said. “Hopefully, we continue that momentum moving forward because it’s like an NBA schedule out here for the next couple weeks: we got three more this week and two next week. [The rematch with Lightridge] is our last game out of four this week, so we gotta make sure we’re resting our bodies and we’re ready to go at the tip-off because it could go either way.”
Derrick Jerry captured 175+ photos at the game!
Stone Bridge Stats
| Player Name | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Steals | Blocks | FT |
| Keeley Billings | 20 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 6-for-6 |
| Sheila Suarez | 15 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2-for-2 |
| Ava Ryan | 11 | 15 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 1-for-2 |
| Campbell Lee | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Charlotte Borley | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Kaylee Maphis | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2-for-2 |
| Gretchen Griswold | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Emma Spizuoco | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1-for-2 |
| Bethany Layton | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Ashley Layton | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Katie Smith | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0-for-0 |
| Total | 61 | 28 | 13 | 7 | 1 | 12-for-14 |
Lightridge Stats
| Player Name | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Steals | Blocks | FT |
| Gabrielle Dillard | 12 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-2 |
| Chloe Sombillo | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1-for-2 |
| Mikayla Bowe | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2-for-3 |
| Jalyn Childress | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Madison Webb | 4 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Ashley Hughes | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1-for-4 |
| Ella Kalinsky | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Kensley Cook | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Elena Navarro | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Molly Bollhorst | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Gabriella Garcia | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Olivia McGriff | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Total | 37 | 26 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 4-for-11 |