It took them their entire high school basketball career to reach the Shoreline Conference final on March 4 and, despite the fact that Valley lost in heartbreaking fashion in overtime, seniors Mitchell King, Taylor Rioux, Mike Marshall, Etienne Libert, Kyle Connor, and David Johns will most likely never forget this game. Having helped build this team to what it was-along with Shoreline Conference Coach of the Year Kevin Woods, who took over the team two years ago-this group of seniors worked hard to get the Warriors to the final after posting a 19-1 regular-season record. Despite losing to Old Lyme 63-61 in overtime, the Warriors have their heads held high as the state tournament approaches.

"Props go to Old Lyme. I know their players, they're great guys, and they deserve it," said tri-captain and First Team All-Shoreline player King. "They outplayed us tonight and they were the better team tonight. We still have the state tournament and this is going to be sad for about 10 minutes, then we have to focus on states. We've got a state championship to win. We didn't win the conference, but we still have another goal out there."

With a standing-room-only crowd on hand and dozens still waiting outside Old Saybrook High School for entrance into the already-packed gymnasium, battle ensued between Valley and Old Lyme in front of an electric crowd. Old Lyme jumped out with the first points, but Valley's Connor notched the next five after a solid defensive play that led to a Wildcat turnover. Old Lyme answered with a three-pointer of its own that was followed by buckets from both King and Shoreline Conference Player of the Year Rioux. Sophomore Jon Luster made one of many three-pointers with a basket apiece from King, Rioux, and Connor to round out the first quarter with Valley up 18-13.

Valley extended its lead in the second quarter as it appeared to be unstoppable, scoring point after point and causing Old Lyme to falter with turnovers. Luster stole the ball to lead off the quarter and scored right off the bat, adding a total of seven more before the halftime buzzer. Mason King made a strong defensive attack, stealing the ball right from the opponent's hand for a pass to Mitch King, who scored four consecutive points. Old Lyme ended the quarter with six consecutive shots, but Valley went into the locker room at halftime up 32-21.

"The team's hot, they're playing well right now, and they're playing cohesive and they showed that tonight," said King. "We came in and we were rattled-it's a tough atmosphere to play in, being in here with so many people. We hadn't seen an atmosphere like this before. I think we were just a little bit shaken, a little bit unprepared. Maybe we took it a little too lightly. But despite whether we think our opponent is evenly matched with us or not, we try to play the same way in every game. It's a credit to Old Lyme-it's not about how we played, but how great Old Lyme played. They did everything right, they made shots, shut us down."

The third quarter tipped the scales in favor of the Wildcats. Coming out of the halftime break on fire, they quickly racked up the points, leaving Valley almost stunned. The Wildcats scored the first two points that were followed by baskets by Mitch King and Luster after an aggressive move around Old Lyme's defense. Valley then had a series of misfortunes starting with a turnover and Mitch King's departure for a few minutes due to an ankle injury. Old Lyme took advantage, going on an 11-0 run to tie the game. Connor hit a three-pointer to put the Warriors ahead again, but that was answered with two points from the Wildcats that was followed by two points from King. The score was a very close 41-40 at the end of the third quarter.

"We were outplayed in the third quarter," said Coach Kevin Woods. "We have to give credit to Old Lyme, they're so hot right now. We're playing good ball, too, but they set their game up and we have to tip our caps to them because they made the shots and we didn't."

The game continued to get more heated, as Old Lyme finally took a lead in the fourth quarter. Mitch King and Connor started the quarter off with scores before Old Lyme took one back. King responded, but it was Wildcats' three-pointer that sent the crowd into hysteria as the game was tied at 47-47 with 4:00 left. King notched two more for the quarter with Luster adding five and Rioux and Mason King hitting some free throws. But the Wildcats stunned again when they dropped a three-pointer with 23 seconds left to tie the game 56-56 and send it to overtime.

"We were pumped in overtime and we knew we could win because their big guy [Colin Devlin] was out on too many fouls," said Woods. "I have a lot of respect for their big guy-he didn't score a lot tonight, but his presence is big. We should've gone after them a little bit more and trapped them right away, but we ended up playing not to lose and I'll take the fall for that one."

With a four-minute overtime period to play and the conference title on the line, Valley came out with its best effort. With Rioux having fouled out, the Warriors had to figure out a way to beat the hot Wildcats without one of their top scorers. Valley ran into some foul trouble in overtime as Old Lyme scored five points on free throws and the remaining by maneuvering around the Warriors' defense. Mitch King had two points and Marshall had three, but it was Old Lyme that scored the extra two with 14 seconds left to put it ahead, where the decision remained with a score of 63-61.

"These guys have played great all year and I'm taking nothing away from these guys and expect them to make a big run in the state tournament, expect them to respond," said Woods. "Tip your caps to them, they'll be okay tomorrow. It's not the side you want to be on, but I have confidence and I know we'll get there."