The Alvirne High School Girls’ Basketball team started the winter season last week with a home victory over the Manchester Memorial Crusaders, marking the second straight year the team began the year with a win over that opponent.
The Lady Broncos 2025-26 roster reveals a lot of experience with the six seniors listed, but they are also joined by three freshman, two sophomores and no juniors.
One significant hole in this year’s line-up is the absence of Courtney Anderson, who would have been the team’s only junior and a major offensive asset.
Anderson and family moved north, to the lake region, and she will be playing at the Prep School Proctor Academy.
In the game on Friday night, Dec. 12 the Broncos came out with some opening night jitters, scoring just 13-points and trailed the Crusaders 13-14 after one quarter, but the Broncos rallied a bit in the second quarter and limited their opponents offense, outscoring the Manchester squad 15-7, for a 28-21 lead going into the locker room at the half.
Coming out of the break, Alvirne had another 15-7 quarter to stretch their lead to 15-points, with 43-28 shown on the board after three periods.
The Broncos made it three-straight periods of holding Manchester to just seven-points and finished the nights scoring 13-points in the fourth for the hard-fought victory.
Senior Lexi Floyd led her team in scoring with 22-points. Floyd had five three-pointers in the game, two in the second and third, and one in the fourth quarter.
Fellow senior, Julia Adams finished with 13-points and sophomore Adrienne Chipfunde had one, three-pointer and two baskets for seven-points in the home opener.
The Alvirne squad finished the 2024 regular season at 9-9 and went 10-8 in 2025, where they made it to the first round of the NHIAA State Championships, but fell to the Blue Devils in Salem 43-29 as the eleventh seed.
Frank Girginis returns as head coach and is looking forward to the season.
After the game Girginis said, “We have a group of seniors that have plenty of experience playing at the varsity level.”
He added, “Where the spotlight might not be on any one of them individually together as a whole it can be. This group has put in an enormous amount of time and effort in their four years, but their senior season is gonna be their biggest challenge. I’m confident they know what and how we have to do it.
On the younger players Girginis said, “I think we also have a great group of underclassman that can contribute and help right way. I am excited to see what they can do. They are chopping at the bit to get out there. Overall, we might not shine in one particular area, but if they all bring what they’re good at and we play together as a team, the light will shine on us all.”
The team is scheduled for two games this week.
On Tuesday, Dec. 16, they will head to Goffstown to play the 0-1 Grizzlies, followed by a game in Keene on Thursday against the 1-0 Blackbirds.
