There were many tears after coming up so close, and it was almost as excruciating for the Lady Pirates to watch the Knights receive gold medals around their necks on the other side of the Giant Center court.

But in time, maybe in the not-so-distant future, Friday may be remembered as a day of celebration around the Williamsburg community. Not because of coming up just short on the state’s biggest stage or seemingly the entire town witnessing their Lady Pirates in the state championship.

But it may be because it became the day that Williamsburg, with a population of about 1,200 people, was officially put on the map again as a state powerhouse.

It was a day that Williamsburg had waited 29 long years to see again after the 1997 team beat Marian Catholic, 55-43, at the Hersheypark Arena. Assistant coach Mandi Prough played on that team, and now has a daughter of her own that is a current Lady Pirate.

Mirror photo by Patrick Waksmunski The Williamsburg Community High School student section looks nervous in the late fourth quarter.

Head coach Angela Detwiler was in sixth grade and in attendance that day. Several of the current Lady Pirates have mothers or relatives that were also on that team.

It will also be looked back on as a time where the Williamsburg girls showed a lot of growth in such a short amount of time.

In late January, the Lady Pirates were blown out by Saint Joseph’s Catholic Academy, 72-44. Only a month ago in the district playoffs, Williamsburg fell to Bishop Guilfoyle Academy, 61-31. The Lady Pirates also fell to Saint Joe’s again in the third-place game in the district playoffs.

But as soon as the calendar flipped to March, a month known for its madness, Williamsburg became a different team.

“Probably two and a half weeks ago, something switched. We all started clicking,” senior point guard LeeAnna Royer said. “It just started working out. We never thought we would be here at that point.”

It started off with a pair of easy victories for the Lady Pirates against Serra Catholic and Elk County Catholic in the first two PIAA rounds. All four teams that advanced to the state playoffs in District 6 — Bishop Guilfoyle, Bishop Carroll, Saint Joe’s and Williamsburg found themselves in the quarterfinals in the western half of the bracket. It was the exact same bracket as a year ago.

This time, the fourth-place finisher in Williamsburg survived both of them, beating Bishop Carroll by five points, and shocking everyone with a 60-41 victory over Saint Joe’s in the semifinals. It had been less than three weeks before Saint Joe’s beat the Lady Pirates in the district playoffs.

“We were fourth in our district. Our district is really good for a reason,” junior post player Levada Gorsuch said.

If there was a bright spot for Williamsburg on Friday, it was Gorsuch. Gorsuch, who may have also been a key in the Lady Pirates’ spark in the state playoffs after coming back from an ankle injury in the district playoffs, had an easy double-double with 19 points and 19 rebounds.

Detwiler called the lopsided losses in the district playoffs and the injury to Gorsuch “rock bottom” for the program.

“The girls showed up the next day, Vada with her crutches, and we just kind of rallied together and we’ve made it to this point,” Detwiler said. “The girls played with a lot of heart. They played together, and I’m really proud of them for making it here.”

And yes, it may have culminated in the toughest of ways for Williamsburg on Friday. On most days, the Lady Pirates won’t go one for 24 from the 3-point line like it did against Delco Christian. It also probably won’t happen too often where they only have one basket for an entire period like they did in the fourth quarter on Friday.

But it’s also very possible this won’t be the only appearance in Hershey that Williamsburg makes. They will graduate two seniors in Royer and Regan Prough. They’ll also return starters in Gorsuch, and juniors Bella Royer and Brynn Lower. There’s also six more underclassmen along with that trio who will be as hungry as ever.

“I have a lot of young girls that want to fight to get back here,” Detwiler said. “LeeAnna was in the locker room and she was saying, ‘I know you girls can do it. I’m going to be cheering you girls on in the future.’ That’s kind of how the Lady Pirates are.”

Circle the dates for the PIAA championships next season, and keep a pushpin on the little town of Williamsburg on your Pennsylvania state map.

Andy Stine can be reached at astine@altoonamirror.com. Follow him on X at @riseandstine.