Girls’ basketball: Kingsmen best Crimson Tide, 66-21, in Concord battle on Friday night

Concord Christian guard Lilli Carlile dribbles past Concord High guard Abigail Lash during the second quarter on Friday.

Concord Christian guard Lilli Carlile dribbles past Concord High guard Abigail Lash during the second quarter on Friday. GEOFF FORESTER / Monitor staff

Concord Christian guard Lilli Carlile goes up for a layup against Concord High School on Friday.

Concord Christian guard Lilli Carlile goes up for a layup against Concord High School on Friday. GEOFF FORESTER / Monitor staff

Concord Christian guard Lilli Carlile goes up against Concord High guard Abigail Lash during the second quarter on Friday.

Concord Christian guard Lilli Carlile goes up against Concord High guard Abigail Lash during the second quarter on Friday. GEOFF FORESTER / Monitor staff

Concord Christian forward Sadie Thompson goes up against Concord High School during the second period on Friday.

Concord Christian forward Sadie Thompson goes up against Concord High School during the second period on Friday. GEOFF FORESTER / Monitor staff

By ALEXANDER RAPP

Monitor staff

Published: 01-18-2025 10:05 AM

The Concord Christian Academy girls’ basketball team got the better of the Concord High School Crimson Tide on Friday night with a huge win, 66-21. Junior Emma Smith led CCA with 24 points while senior Lilli Carlile followed her closely behind with 23.

“They’re really just smart players and they love to play together. They look for each other, they’ve been playing together since they were in fourth grade, they’re cousins, so they just they’re fun to watch together. They did a great job,” said Concord Christian coach Rebecca Carlile.

With the win against their crosstown opponents, the Kingsmen are now fifth in the Division I standings with a 6-2 record. Not bad for a team that’s playing its first season in D-I. 

On the other hand, the Tide girls are still in search of their first win of the season, falling to 0-7. Led by first-year head coach John Edwards, they have improved their ball movement and have found new ways to get points in the paint. Senior guard Makayla Root led the Tide with 12 points.

“Even though we only have seven players, the effort that they produce is the type of team that should have more success as time goes on. Other than that you just go out and play every day, you play to get better, you practice to get better, and you hope that that in turn makes them feel like the team is getting better,” said Edwards.

The Kingsmen were able to tire out the Tide’s small rotation. Concord was able to keep up with the Concord Christian for most of the first half, but could not sustain its output against a CCA team able to field fresh and quick legs on the court.

“Overall, I would say, actually given the circumstances our kids are pretty mentally tough. It’s a really difficult balance between, are they mentally tough and are they doing the best they can,” Edwards added.

The Kingsmen girls created fast break points by forcing turnovers and making tough shots in the paint. Since losing their first game of the season they have been on a tear, with consistently good defensive and offensive performances that terrorized teams in their previous championship-winning seasons in lower divisions over the previous three years.

Article continues after...

Yesterday's Most Read Articles

More than muscle: Concord gym plays critical role for those in recovery
DCYF says it doesn’t have enough money in its budget to let federal benefits flow to NH foster families
Epsom administrators say state rep misrepresented meeting cited as prompting bill that would diminish curriculum requirements
Can N.H. government do more with less? Here’s what state leaders say they can and can’t live without.
Special education costs drive up Bow’s school budget
Hopkinton importer sees opportunity for inexpensive, lightweight trucks

“We’re just trying to iron out all the kinks. We’re thankful for the losses that we had early in the season. Because it’s just pointing out things that we need to work on for the end of the season when it really matters right,” said Carlile. “So tonight we did a really great job controlling the boards, which is something we’ve been emphasizing in practice the last couple of weeks, so I’m proud of their performance tonight.”

Concord will travel to play Manchester Central-West next while the Concord Christian girls will return home to host Trinity, both games will on Tuesday night.

Alexander Rapp can be reached at arapp@cmonitor.com