WESLEY CHAPEL, Fla. — “The level of play was epic,” Warren coach Lisa LaVan said of the Dragons’ three-game Florida trip that ended on New Year’s Day.

Warren (6-2) went 1-2 over the holiday break, including a last-second win over Millington Central (Tennessee) on Friday and a four-point loss to Faith Christian (Florida) on Saturday.

“The competition was unreal,” said LaVan. “It was a great experience for them for so many reasons. We needed this to prepare us for other parts of our season.”

Before the more-than 1,100-mile trip to a part of what’s known as the Tampa Bay area, Warren was 5-0 and coming off last season in which it won its second PIAA District 10 title in three seasons.

Looking to take another step forward, with two senior college basketball commits on the roster, LaVan and the Dragons raised funds for the annual Tampa Bay Christmas Invitational, one of the nation’s top girls basketball tournaments.

In game two on Friday, one of those seniors — Emma Ruhlman — made a spin move and left-handed layup with 8 seconds left to lift Warren to a 47-46 win against Class 3A Millington. The seniors, Riley Childress and Ruhlman, combined for 29 of Warren’s 47 points. Ruhlman added 10 rebounds.

“The girls really dug deep to get the win,” said LaVan. “It was a very physical, hard-fought game.”

LaVan said Childress and Sammie Ruhlman got in Keria McGhee’s face to force a miss to end the game.

Saturday’s game also went to the buzzer with a Warren run ending with a 44-40 loss to Faith Christian (14-3), the second-ranked 2A team in Florida (out of four classifications).

The Dragons trailed 25-10 at halftime, but Emma Ruhlman scored all 15 of her points in the second half and Childress added three 3-pointers. She also finished with 15 points.

“We had the ball down two with time left, just didn’t get a good look,” said LaVan.

Jan. 1, 2022

FAITH CHRISTIAN (44)

Hayes 5 3-3 16, Soto 5 2-2 14, Forine 1 1-2 3, Botelho 0 0-0 0, Alvarado 0 0-0 0, Patterson 3 3-4 9, Gardner 0 0-0 0, Figueroa 1 0-0 2, Santana 0 0-0 0. Totals 15 9-11 44.

WARREN (40)

SRuhlman 0 0-0 0, Kuzminski 1 0-0 2, Farr 0 0-0 0, Childress 6 0-0 15, Stuart 1 0-0 2, Madigan 2 0-0 4, ERuhlman 5 5-7 15, GRuhlman 1 0-0 2. Totals 16 5-7 40.

3-point goals–Hayes 3, Soto 2, Childress 3.

Faith Christian 11 14 10 9 — 44

Warren 8 2 13 17 — 40

Dec. 31, 2021

MILLINGTON (46)

Dotson 8 0-0 17, Ransom 2 0-0 4, McGhee 3 2-2 10, Halliburton 3 4-4 12, Alexander 0 0-0 0, Young 0 0-0 0, Chambers 0 1-2 1, Turner 0 0-0 0, Spearman 1 0-0 2. Totals 17 7-8 46.

WARREN (47)

SRuhlman 2 0-0 5, Kuzminski 2 0-0 4, Farr 0 0-0 0, Childress 6 1-1 15, Stuart 2 1-1 5, Madigan 0 0-0 0, ERuhlman 6 1-2 14, GRuhlman 2 0-0 4. Totals 20 3-4 47.

3-point goals–Dotson, McGhee 2, Halliburton 2, SRuhlman, Childress 2, ERuhlman.

Millington 9 17 10 10 — 46

Warren 16 12 10 9 — 47