Then came Saturday's NCHSAA 4-A girls basketball championship game against Butler High out of Matthews. And that magical, undefeated season came to an end with a thud. Butler had no trouble with Green Hope, scoring the most points in a 4-A girls championship game to win 87-61.

The Lady Bulldogs came out to a 13-0 start and led by as many as 31. They used their height to control the boards (49-19), and points in the paint (50-16). In nearly every statistical category, Butler had the upper hand.

Green Hope coach Michael Robinson said he had originally thought his Falcons (31-1) could out-run Butler, but that backfired when the Bulldogs proved to be just as fast. Butler scored 20 fast break points to Green Hope's zero.

It was a hard loss to stomach for a Falcons team that had accomplished so much, setting school records in almost every category there is. Their first loss was their last.

"The Butler squad was very physical," Robinson said. "They took over the game. We couldn't get into our offense."

Two years ago, Green Hope had never achieved a win in the playoffs or a winning season. After last year's 15-12 run, Green Hope found itself on the doorstep of the NCHSAA 4-A championship.

"I just wanted to finish it out strong, for the senior year," Alyssa Paul said. "We couldn't do it, but I'm happy we came this far. [It] had never been done before."

Butler touted two players with Division I scholarships in hand. Those two, Cierra Burdick (28 points, 14 rebounds) and Clair Watkins (20 points, eight rebounds) lived up to the billing.

Burdick, already the Gatorade N.C. Player of the Year as a junior, was the tournament's MVP. Watkins was named her team's Most Outstanding Player.

Green Hope battled to the end, although those efforts didn't show on the scoreboard until the second half. Butler dominated the first quarter 22-9 and led 42-19 at the break.

"The girls played hard. They never quit. And that's what they've done all year," Robinson said. "We're not supposed to be here, is what everyone thinks. We weren't supposed to be 31-0 at the time, but the girls all believed. That's a testament to how they are. They have a lot of guts and a lot of heart."

Junior Caitlyn Ranson provided a spark for Green Hope in the latter quarters, finishing with 21 points on 5-of-8 shooting from 3-point range. Kristen Gaffney scored 25 to break the state record for most points in a sophomore season with 831.

Gaffney was named her team's Most Outstanding Player, but hit just 7-of-20 shots as the size of Burdick and Watkins kept her from scoring in her normal spots.

Freshman Ashley Williams' night was cut short after badly rolling her right ankle halfway through the second quarter. Williams returned to play some in the third quarter, but didn't return after her first second-half trip to the bench.

Junior Camille Forbes had seven points, Paul had six and reserve freshman Cassidey Sowards had two for the Lady Falcons. Senior Tyler Hood, reserve sophomore Sidney Durand and Williams all played but registered no points.

Paul and Hood join Kaylin Thompson and Jessie Craig as four departing Green Hope seniors who re-wrote the school history books. Robinson will return four starters from this year's team, which will try to remember the 31 wins more so than the season-ending defeat.

"I think this year we showed everyone how good we can be," Ranson said. "This is just a stepping stone of what we will be next year. We'll come back 10 times harder next year."