SHAKER HEIGHTS, Ohio — Things have been different this year for coach Paul Barlow and the Hathaway Brown girls basketball program.
The record five-time defending Division II state champions lost a lot of players from last season's team, and the results have been the opposite of recent seasons -- a 1-19 regular season record this winter. However, on Saturday the Blazers were back in a familiar place: winning in the playoffs. With its 77-28 sectional semifinal victory over Martin Luther King Jr., Hathaway Brown set an Ohio High School Athletic Association record for boys and girls teams with its 37th consecutive playoff victory. The record was held by Regina.
While the season has not been the easiest for the Blazers, who are seeded sixth at the Division II Macedonia sectional/district, being able to set the record is a testament to the efforts of Barlow's players. Playing one of the state's most challenging schedules, HB opened the season at 0-13 and won its only regular season game Jan. 9 against Archbishop Hoban.
“I told the girls before this game that the record is an important one to me,” Barlow said. “Credit to them for continuing to play hard throughout this season, and it feels nice to get the win today. So many people have been a part of this streak, and it just a great honor for our basketball program.”
Senior guard Beth Brzozowski, who finished the game with 12 points, has had quite an impressive career during her time at Hathaway Brown. She is a three-time state champion, while ranking first in school history in 3-pointers made, and second in career assists.
She will be continuing her basketball career at Penn next season. Being able to break such a prestigious record Saturday will be one of the accomplishments she remembers the most.
“This is definitely one of the best moments during my career here at Hathaway Brown,” Brzozowski said. “Winning the state title last season was definitely incredible moment, but being able to break the record for most consecutive playoff victories is pretty special as well. I have had such a great time during my four years playing for coach, but this is easily a top two moment."
The streak started during the 2008-09 season, when the Blazers won their first state title. One of the members on that team, Alexis Dobbs is now a senior guard at American University. After she scored 19 points in her team’s 72-61 victory over Lehigh, Dobbs was proud to hear what her high school accomplished.
“It is just another achievement that shows how great that coach Barlow is at his job,” Dobbs said. “During my time there it was a building process. Our first two years we made it to the state finals, but we did not get the job done. However, we continued to work on building off that, and we were able to get back and win it my final two years. Coach has built such a great program that continues to have success, and it is an honor to say that I played for him and graduated from that school.”
Hathaway Brown will be back in action on Thursday against the winner of Saturday night's sectional semifinal between Revere and John F. Kennedy.
Ad Choices