Gainesville High Girls’ Basketball Has Eye Set on District

Gainesville girls’ basketball closed an up-and down regular season Thursday by falling to visiting Williston 63-41.

Gainesville (10-9) got off to a rocky start by struggling to break Williston’s press. By the end of the first half, the Hurricanes trailed by eight (37-29). 

Williston (16-2) took control in the third quarter by limiting Gainesville to four points to extend its lead to 55-33.

This has been a season of rebuilding for Gainesville after losing three dominant guards from last year, two of whom went on to play Division 1 collegiate basketball.

First-year coach Ken Mitchell knew the Hurricanes were facing a tall task.

 “After you lose two division-one players and have maybe one or two rotational players coming back, we went immediately into building mode,” Mitchell said.

The Hurricanes’ backcourt has been led by junior guards Mateja Allen and Sarah Collins, who were both a part of last season’s 5A state tournament runner-up team. 

Allen, who ended the game with 13 points, explained how playing under last season’s senior guards helped her transition into a leadership role on the court this year.

“It just allowed me to learn from a lot of good guards and I was able to learn their skills,” Allen said.

Despite the loss Thursday, the Hurricanes still enter this week’s 5A-District-2 Tournament as the No. 1 seed that earned them a bye in the first round. Gainesville will host the winner of Monday’s opener between four seed Tallahassee Chiles (12-10) and five seed Columbia (6-14) in the semifinals at a date to be announced.

“I want to say we were ruled out for the district, but the reality is, if we buckle down, I’m picking GHS,” Mitchell said.

2026 FHSAA Girls Basketball District Tournaments 5A District 2

Category: Gainesville High School, High School Sports, Williston High School