IMG Academy’s girls basketball team makes history at national championship
IMG Academy’s girls basketball team made history over the weekend.
The Ascenders captured the program’s first national championship in an all-Florida showdown Saturday. After trailing top-seeded Montverde Academy by 11 points at halftime, IMG rallied and won the Chipotle Nationals title 80-78 in overtime.
IMG finished runner-up in 2024, but a quartet of seniors did not let the Ascenders get denied this year. Kelis Fisher, a guard and Connecticut commit, led IMG with 23 points.
Small forward Lara Somfai, a Stanford commit and McDonald’s All-American, guard and Pittsburgh commit Nylah Wilson and small forward Deniya Prawl, a Tennessee commit and McDonald’s All-American, were credited with key roles in the championship run, IMG said.
“This championship is a testament to the hard work, dedication, and belief that these young women have shown all season,” IMG basketball director Mike Gillian said in a news release. “After finishing second last year, they came back and fought for this moment. I couldn’t be prouder of this team and their buy-in to our purpose of winning their future together.”
IMG girls basketball wins Chipotle Nationals
Wilson nailed a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to win IMG’s semifinal game against Westtown (Pennsylvania) School, according to High School on SI.
Kelsi Andrews had 13 rebounds and Asia Keels added five assists in the championship game for the Ascenders.
“I wouldn’t change anything,” Fisher said ahead of UConn’s national title win Sunday, according to ESPN. “I was confident all weekend, just like I’m confident about my Huskies.”
The girls team’s first national title is also IMG basketball’s first since 2019 when the boys team triumphed.
In addition to Somfai and Prawl, IMG also produced a McDonald’s All-American on the boys side this season. Darius Acuff Jr., who is an Arkansas commit, played in the opening round of the boys Chipotle Nationals on Wednesday. He led the team with 23 points, but they lost 75-57 to Utah’s Wasatch Academy.
The tournament was held in Fishers, Indiana.
