NEW ORLEANS — The Riverside Academy girls basketball team put up a good fight against defending state champion St. Katharine Drexel Monday night but ultimately ended the season with a heartbreaking 45-52 loss.

Lady Rebels senior Bria Neal led her team in scoring with 28 points, followed by Kash’Mir Foley’s 11 points.

Riverside Academy, seeded No. 14, went into the game expecting a fast-paced brawl against the No. 3 seeded St. Katharine Drexel. The Lady Rebels trailed by only three points entering the fourth quarter, then slipped behind as the Lady Yellow Jackets hit from the free throw line, coach Kevin Dizer said.

“I think our girls played an outstanding game,” Dizer said.

“The effort was there. They understood the game plan. For the most part, we did a good job executing. For us to have a season where we struggled a lot and put together that kind of effort against the defending champs with their whole team returning says a lot about our girls.”

Seniors Neal, Foley and Annie Wang led the team this season as veterans of the game, often taking time to teach younger girls the fundamentals.

The Lady Rebels finished 6-20 this season, and Dizer sees more rebuilding seasons to come.

“Next year, we’re going to be extremely young, and, as a coach, that’s exciting,” Dizer said. “They might be two or three years from being really good, but I’m looking forward to watching that maturation process.”