Staff photo / Dan Hiner Bristol’s Lauren Church (14) blocks a layup attempt by Western Reserve’s Chloeigh Endsley (55) during the third quarter of Friday’s game at Western Reserve High School.

BERLIN CENTER — The Bristol girls basketball team had a noticeable challenge on Friday afternoon. They visited Western Reserve, who had previously won 10 games in a row.

The Panthers gave it their best effort, but they couldn’t keep up with the powerhouse Blue Devils, falling 59-33.

“They’re a great basketball team,” Bristol head coach Randall Ward said. “I think (Western Reserve head coach Steve Miller) is the best coach in the area, I think they’re the best public school program in the area. We played really well in the first quarter, but they took it to another level in the second quarter. We weren’t able to match that.”

With the win, the 2026 Western Reserve girls basketball team made program history, marking the first time they reached 20 wins in the regular season. There was also an emotional side to Friday’s game for Western Reserve (20-1).

Only four minutes into the game, Western Reserve stormed the court. The players made their way to Kylee Ramsey, who jumped into the crowd of teammates.

Ramsey scored her 1,000th career point on a 3-point attempt, making her the seventh Blue Devil to reach the milestone.

The Blue Devils tried forcing the ball to Ramsey during the first quarter since she only needed one point to reach 1,000. The Panthers (5-13) were able to take advantage.

Despite the difference in record, the Panthers gave Western Reserve a fight in the first. The visitors briefly led 9-8, but a six-point run in the final minute gave the Blue Devils a 15-10 lead at the end of the first.

The Blue Devils carried that momentum into the second quarter. They dominated the frame, outscoring the Panthers 19-3 to take a 34-13 lead into the break thanks to some second-chance opportunities.

“With the atmosphere, with everybody being a little extra amped up, we played with a little bit of jitters for a while,” Western Reserve head coach Steve Miller said.

Western Reserve was in complete control throughout the second half, and both teams started introducing bench players by the four-minute point in the fourth quarter.

Ramsey led all scorers with 20 points, including a team-high three 3-pointers. Quincy Miller added 13 points, and Kylah Busch finished with seven.

Lauren Church knocked down a game-best four 3-pointers as she finished with 16 points to lead Bristol. She was the only Panther with double-digit points.

The Panthers have lost their last five. Ward wants his girls to continue to improve with the hope that they can make some noise when the tournament starts in a couple weeks.

“Continue to get better as we get to the tournament run, and take it one game at a time once we get to the tournament,” Ward said.

KIDS IN THE CROWD

The game took place at 12:30 p.m., and the gym was filled with students of all ages. After the game, the students were dismissed back to their classes.

But for a couple hours, the student section was filled in its normal spot as teachers and younger students filled in the rest of the room. In total, roughly 600 attended the game to watch the Blue Devils make history individually and as a team.

“I think our girls responded to the environment pretty well,” Ward said. “It excites me, because hopefully we can play in front of crowds like this more often.”