Focused On the Now: O’Neal Girls Hoops Continuing Streak
By JONATHAN BYM || jonathan@thepilot.com 2 hrs ago Comments
Over the last six years, O’Neal basketball guard Caelan McHarney has seen and been a big part in the dynamic change the O’Neal girls basketball team has gone through.
As a seventh-grader, McHarney and the Falcons lost in the conference tournament to Cary Christian in February 2017. Approaching five years later, O’Neal has not lost to a conference opponent since. The streak was extended to 44 regular season conference games after a 79-16 win over Carolina Friends Monday night, and it's been 56 games against conference opponents counting conference tournament games that O’Neal has come out victorious.
You won’t find the Falcons keeping track of that.
“We don’t talk about it,” McHarney said. “For me, I see past that. I don’t really think about our streak as much. I didn’t realize that it was out to a 44-game win streak. I just play really hard and I know that my whole team behind me is going to play just as hard.”
Playing hard is what McHarney has been known for the last six years with the Falcons as a starter since she first joined the team in middle school.
“She is the workhorse and in her time since seventh grade, she’s played a different role on any given team,” O’Neal girls coach LuluBrase said. “She started as a seventh-grader not knowing what to say. She’s been the starting point guard since then, evolving from not knowing what to say and having to lead upperclassmen to just seeing her dictate the floor and 100 percent be the coach on the floor.”
Much like McHarney has grown on the court, O’Neal girls basketball had to develop an identity early in Brase’s tenure. Once Brase helped establish the culture of the team, the Falcons took flight. And they did so quickly, with the undefeated streak in conference starting her third year at the head of the program.
“When I got here, girls basketball was just something people did. It was an activity,” Brase said. “Now, not only are they here to become better basketball players, but it is a full thing where they grow as young ladies. Ultimately, we want them to be successful in whatever they want to do and just learn that putting in the work gets you those results.”
Senior Talayah Baldwin has been part of the program since her freshman year and has witnessed the growth of the program, even in the midst of the undefeated streak, to where it is today.
“I’m thankful that I can share my season with these two, and it’s also a great thing to see all of the changes we’ve made since ninth grade and all the growth that has happened throughout the last four years,” she said.
The recent run includes back-to-back N.C. Independent School Athletic Association state championship game appearances in 2019 and 2020. Both games were losses to Davidson Day, a sore spot that McHarney and some of the other veteran players on the team want to rectify in their last season.
“We really want to be state champs. O’Neal has lost to the same team in the state finals for two years,” McHarney said. “I would cry for four days if we won states.”
This year’s team has a mix of newcomers, with close to an even split of the roster being returners from last season, and other being first-year players with the program. One of the new faces this season is senior post player Taylor Woods.
Coming from nearby Lee Christian, she has added depth to the frontcourt.
“They welcomed me with open arms. It was great to have that atmosphere in workouts,” Woods said. “I think I add well to the program. I don’t really think too much about the streak. We are just focused on the end goal: states.”
With the roster turnover, there was a fear among the leader of the team on how the team would work together this season. Those worries were fleeting as now the unit is working together, bonding on and off the court. O’Neal currently has a 13-3 overall record and is ranked in the top five in the state for the NCISAA 2A class.
“I was definitely worried in the beginning, but now that time has progressed, I can see the bond and the sisterhood we have,” Baldwin said.
A group chat sharing TikTok videos from teams across the country, making TikTok videos themselves and bonding at the lunchroom table were all elements that helped develop the team’s chemistry.
The three seniors make up an equal share of production on the court with underclassmen like freshman Ashanti Fox and sophomores Reily Johnson and Keylce McSwain leading a youth movement with the squad. Don’t let the classification by their names fool you.
“This is the oldest team we have had in a while, and we’re still pretty young. We have a lot of sophomores and freshmen that are good,” Brase said. “We’ve got those kind of older players and the players who are older in their maturity of basketball. They’ve been there and there’s no more big games and big moments.”
The expectations are the same for every game the Falcons take part in, no matter what the record of the opposing team is. That has led to the consistent success for the program in conference games the last five seasons.
“It means more to me now as a senior. We all want it. The team wants it,” Woods said. “Us being seniors, it’s making me cherish those times that we’ve had. I think I’ve worked harder this year.”
With the postseason looming, conference regular season and tournament championships are interim goals on the road to what everyone on the team has their goals set on. With that in mind, the O’Neal girls aren't moving their focus past the next game ahead.
“The expectations are definitely there, but we talk a lot about being where your feet are and being in the moment,” Brase said. “They don’t know scores, records and all those kinds of things. We talk about winning every play every day.”
Contact Jonathan Bym at (910) 693-2470 or jonathan@thepilot.com.
By JONATHAN BYM || jonathan@thepilot.com 2 hrs ago Comments
Over the last six years, O’Neal basketball guard Caelan McHarney has seen and been a big part in the dynamic change the O’Neal girls basketball team has gone through.
As a seventh-grader, McHarney and the Falcons lost in the conference tournament to Cary Christian in February 2017. Approaching five years later, O’Neal has not lost to a conference opponent since. The streak was extended to 44 regular season conference games after a 79-16 win over Carolina Friends Monday night, and it's been 56 games against conference opponents counting conference tournament games that O’Neal has come out victorious.
You won’t find the Falcons keeping track of that.
“We don’t talk about it,” McHarney said. “For me, I see past that. I don’t really think about our streak as much. I didn’t realize that it was out to a 44-game win streak. I just play really hard and I know that my whole team behind me is going to play just as hard.”
Playing hard is what McHarney has been known for the last six years with the Falcons as a starter since she first joined the team in middle school.
“She is the workhorse and in her time since seventh grade, she’s played a different role on any given team,” O’Neal girls coach LuluBrase said. “She started as a seventh-grader not knowing what to say. She’s been the starting point guard since then, evolving from not knowing what to say and having to lead upperclassmen to just seeing her dictate the floor and 100 percent be the coach on the floor.”
Much like McHarney has grown on the court, O’Neal girls basketball had to develop an identity early in Brase’s tenure. Once Brase helped establish the culture of the team, the Falcons took flight. And they did so quickly, with the undefeated streak in conference starting her third year at the head of the program.
“When I got here, girls basketball was just something people did. It was an activity,” Brase said. “Now, not only are they here to become better basketball players, but it is a full thing where they grow as young ladies. Ultimately, we want them to be successful in whatever they want to do and just learn that putting in the work gets you those results.”
Senior Talayah Baldwin has been part of the program since her freshman year and has witnessed the growth of the program, even in the midst of the undefeated streak, to where it is today.
“I’m thankful that I can share my season with these two, and it’s also a great thing to see all of the changes we’ve made since ninth grade and all the growth that has happened throughout the last four years,” she said.
The recent run includes back-to-back N.C. Independent School Athletic Association state championship game appearances in 2019 and 2020. Both games were losses to Davidson Day, a sore spot that McHarney and some of the other veteran players on the team want to rectify in their last season.
“We really want to be state champs. O’Neal has lost to the same team in the state finals for two years,” McHarney said. “I would cry for four days if we won states.”
This year’s team has a mix of newcomers, with close to an even split of the roster being returners from last season, and other being first-year players with the program. One of the new faces this season is senior post player Taylor Woods.
Coming from nearby Lee Christian, she has added depth to the frontcourt.
“They welcomed me with open arms. It was great to have that atmosphere in workouts,” Woods said. “I think I add well to the program. I don’t really think too much about the streak. We are just focused on the end goal: states.”
With the roster turnover, there was a fear among the leader of the team on how the team would work together this season. Those worries were fleeting as now the unit is working together, bonding on and off the court. O’Neal currently has a 13-3 overall record and is ranked in the top five in the state for the NCISAA 2A class.
“I was definitely worried in the beginning, but now that time has progressed, I can see the bond and the sisterhood we have,” Baldwin said.
A group chat sharing TikTok videos from teams across the country, making TikTok videos themselves and bonding at the lunchroom table were all elements that helped develop the team’s chemistry.
The three seniors make up an equal share of production on the court with underclassmen like freshman Ashanti Fox and sophomores Reily Johnson and Keylce McSwain leading a youth movement with the squad. Don’t let the classification by their names fool you.
“This is the oldest team we have had in a while, and we’re still pretty young. We have a lot of sophomores and freshmen that are good,” Brase said. “We’ve got those kind of older players and the players who are older in their maturity of basketball. They’ve been there and there’s no more big games and big moments.”
The expectations are the same for every game the Falcons take part in, no matter what the record of the opposing team is. That has led to the consistent success for the program in conference games the last five seasons.
“It means more to me now as a senior. We all want it. The team wants it,” Woods said. “Us being seniors, it’s making me cherish those times that we’ve had. I think I’ve worked harder this year.”
With the postseason looming, conference regular season and tournament championships are interim goals on the road to what everyone on the team has their goals set on. With that in mind, the O’Neal girls aren't moving their focus past the next game ahead.
“The expectations are definitely there, but we talk a lot about being where your feet are and being in the moment,” Brase said. “They don’t know scores, records and all those kinds of things. We talk about winning every play every day.”
Contact Jonathan Bym at (910) 693-2470 or jonathan@thepilot.com.
