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Bishop Ryan breathing rarified air

Excellence. Teamwork. Dedication. Perfection.

Over the last three years, those words have described the Bishop Ryan girls basketball team. On Saturday, the Lions set a standard few have ever reached, winning their third straight Class B basketball championship. During that streak, the Bishop Ryan girls have been almost unbeatable, winning more than 80 straight games against Class B competition. The only blemish the Lions have had in the last two years was a loss to Class A No. 1-ranked Shanley earlier this season.

But that loss, in which Ryan proved it could compete with the best teams at the state’s highest level, was the only setback for a team that has dominated Class B basketball for the last four years. During that stretch, the Lions have proven time and again they they are and were the best team in North Dakota.

While Bishop Ryan made things look easy, we can promise it wasn’t. For every win, the Lions put in hours on the practice court. For every basket, the Bishop Ryan girls took two shots when no one was watching. In the state championship game last year, Bishop Ryan trailed by eight in the fourth quarter, but found a way to rally for the win.

Last weekend, the Lions again faced a stiff challenge from unbeaten Kindred in the final, but in the second half Ryan pulled away to cap another amazing season.

With their best two players graduating in 2015, a fourth straight title may seem like a long shot. But the girls who are returning to proudly carry on the Lion tradition are already working with 2016 in mind.

There are certainly no guarantees on the basketball court, but we are confident the Bishop Ryan Lions will come back next year and give everything they have to defend their title – just like they have the last two years.

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