Size, shooting of Athens Christian too much for Stratford in 47-27 state title loss

COLUMBUS, Ga. — The Stratford Eaglettes finally found a battle they could not win Saturday night.

Head coach Ed Smith’s squad felled many formidable foes this season, including a comeback against a skilled George Walton team in the semifinals this week to advance to the GIAA Class 4A State Championship, but the Athens Christian Eagles had one factor that Stratford’s talent, grit and shooting ability could not conquer — height.

Athens Christian crashed the boards in dominant fashion, using the size advantage of star post players Marlene Mbilima and Voldie Basana to snatch a wealth of rebounds on offense and silence the Eaglettes’ typically boisterous scorers on defense to end Stratford’s season with a gut-wrenching, 47-27 loss in the title game.

The Eaglettes managed only 12 points over the final three quarters, going quiet as they struggled to drive in the lane against Athens Christian’s bigs with no outside shooting to fall back on.

“The size killed us. It altered everything we did,” Smith said. “Once we weren’t playing well, we kind of got our feelings hurt a little bit and we got into that lull there where we just didn’t execute anything on the offensive end.  That’s when it got away from us, and that’s what (Athens Christian) has been doing to people.”

Stratford’s defense held its own in the first half, using solid perimeter guarding to keep things close and take a 19-19 tie into the break, but the unit slipped a little as the game wore on.

“I thought we withstood the third quarter pretty good,” Smith said. “Then they hit a two and a three and went up 7. Our offensive poise was not great after that. They’re too good and too big on defense for that to happen.”

Stratford needed to step up defensively with its shooting game sputtering, but Athens Christian smelled blood in the water after the half. Skilled shooter Ilina Moroianu hit two lethal 3-pointers in the third quarter to contribute to a 12-point period for Athens Christian — a huge edge, considering Stratford scored only 3 points.

“We had some kids come in off the bench, some post players had to come in. They did a good job on the bigs, but at the end of the day the kickouts and the threes were probably the difference in the game,” Smith said. “I don’t know how many they hit … but in a low-scoring game, that’s huge. When you’re working on those bigs and they kick it out and those guards knock down a 3, that’s double trouble right there.”

Those trends continued for the Eaglettes in the fourth quarter, in which Stratford only scored 5 points and allowed Athens Christian to net 16 thanks to some 3-pointers from Josi Vaughn.

Vaughn led Athens Christian with 18 points, including four buckets from beyond the arc, but it was Mbilima and Basana who made the biggest difference with their play down low. Moroianu scored 12 points to round out all the offense Athens Christian would need.

Stratford failed to have a scorer reach double digits, as Delaila Lowe led the team with a 9-point performance. 

It was a bittersweet ending for a senior class that included incredible scorer Camiyah Hudson along with sharpshooter Hayden Craddock and offensive engine Reagan Ray. The 2026 class came achingly close to a state title, reaching the semifinals twice — once as freshmen and again last season as juniors — before finally making the title game this year.

A star player left Stratford before their sophomore campaign, presenting the group with a meaningful decision. They chose to stick around, much to Smith’s delight.

“This is such a great group, and they had a great run,” the head coach said. “I told ‘em two years ago, ‘You have two choices: you can either move on or be part of the solution.’ They chose to be part of the solution. I’m really proud of our senior class. When we look back on what they did, it’s gonna be very, very good.”

One of those memories Smith might look back on is Stratford’s impressive second-half comeback against George Walton in this year’s semifinal — but the longtime Eaglettes leader said the team’s region championship victory over Macon rival FPD was his favorite memory from the team’s impressive season.

“That was just a nutjob of a game. I think the region championship was probably more exciting. The comeback two days ago was probably the best because of the way we had to comeback and fight and scratch, but that region championship game — man, that was like nothing I’ve ever been a part of.”

Smith commended not just his seniors but his entire squad — much of which should return next season, led by Lowe’s scoring prowess — one last time after the loss.

“Just super proud of the girls, they worked hard all year,” Smith said. “It’s hard to get to this game. People don’t realize how hard it is to get to championship games. They fought and they earned it. Unfortunately, tonight we just came up a little bit short.”