Washington’s girls’ basketball team kept its season opener with Northern Nash close throughout the first half, but fell off in the second half in a 60-34 loss. The early-season challenge that comes with taking on a 3-A opponent provides its fair share of learning opportunities, which was the idea of scheduling the Lady Knights.

The game was even at 22-22 heading into the halftime break. The Lady Knights opened the second quarter on a 10-0 run to take a 20-10 lead, but the Pam Pack didn’t back down. The girls started a 12-2 run with an and-one layup, helping them battle back before the half. They got scoring from five different players on that run.

“I told them they were doing a good job,” said first-year head coach Ralph Biggs. “Just keep fighting and keep pushing and we can get through it. I told them to play like they played the last five minutes of the first half. They gave me a good effort.

A quick trey in the third quarter gave Washington a brief 25-24 lead to start the second half, but Northern Nash took over from there. The Lady Knights erupted for 27 points in the third quarter alone while Washington scored just 12 points in the rest of the game.

“They got aggressive and a little more physical with us and we didn’t handle it very well,” Biggs said. “We’ve got to do a better job of handling the pressure and the physicality of the game while still trying to stay with what we do.”

It was an opportunity to learn. Washington has plenty of juniors that are expected to step up in a leadership capacity. Taking on a stout challenge like Northern Nash gave them an idea of what to expect early on.

“I’ve got a lot of juniors on the team,” Biggs said. “They’re going to learn that this is how it is when you play a team like this. They’re from a bigger conference and a bigger school. They’re going to play like this and this is how we want to play. It’s a good learning experience for us as a team. I think they’re going to learn that this is how you have to play — physical and aggressive. The girls are tough enough and mentally strong. They can do it.”

The tools for success are there. The Pam Pack knew where to be and how to, for the most part, run their offense. It was more so a matter of execution and timing, which are problems that teams face early in the season. Between their season opener and a preseason scrimmage, they had only played together twice this season.

Once chemistry improves and timing gets better, a lot of the turnover issues that plagued the offense — and, in turn, the defense — will be resolved.

“It takes time for us to work out some of the kinks,” Biggs said. “We got to get the ball moving more crisply. We’re half a second late on some things where we’ll have a layup and be half a second late, so it turns into a contested layup. It’s timing and getting to know each other better.”

The Pam Pack gets another shot at Northern Nash when they travel to Rocky Mount on Tuesday.