A young Hoquiam squad learned a few lessons during their season-opening game against Kingston on Tuesday night.
The Buccaneers pushed the pace and ran the Grizzlies ragged to plunder the points tally en route to a 62-22 non-league girls basketball win at Hoquiam Square Garden.
Kingston’s Lily Beaulieu led all scorers with 21 points.
“It didn’t go like I thought it would,” HHS head coach Mark Maxfield said. “We played a very good team. I thought we were fast, but they were faster. They got us playing at a speed, a bit of a frenzy, that forced us to miss shots. We’ve been shooting better in practice, but that isn’t a game situation.”
The sophomore dominant Grizzlies struggled to get their offense on-track against the Bucs. Neither team had a player taller than 5-foot-10, thus both teams were moving through the perimeter and driving the paint.
Kingston’s 3-point shooting knocked Hoquiam into a man-to-man defense through most of the contest. The Bucs shot 6-for-20 from behind the arc, enough to keep the Grizzlies out of a zone defense. However, the visitors got into foul trouble, giving the hosts a chance to get into the contest.
With Kingston fielding three players with three or more fouls in the first half, Hoquiam hit 5-for-19 from the free-throw line. The Grizzlies also struggled from the field, hitting just 3-for-18 from the field in the opening half.
With Kingston leading 30-11 at the half, Hoquiam couldn’t slow it down in the third quarter. Ignited by 11 HHS turnovers in the third, the Bucs ran away with a 19-4 frame and a 47-15 lead. In the fourth, both teams kept the pace up to run out the remaining time.
“We made some rough decisions on when to push the ball (up the court),” Maxfield added. “We want to push the ball up the floor, but you have to do it at the right time. You can’t turn it over, but we’ll get better.”
On Saturday, Hoquiam (0-1) will stay home to take on Class 3A Shelton in another non-league contest.
Kingston 14 16 19 13 — 62 Hoquiam 7 4 4 7 — 22
Kingston (62) — A. Hiner 3, George 13, Eliason 7, Beaulieu 21, Siebers 2, E. Hiner 2, Gomez 14, Skinner. FG — 26-57. FT — 4-9.
Hoquiam (22) — Ja. Cox 5, Mode 2, Jump 3, Dunn 2, Parson, Jo. Cox 2, Krohn 4, Bagwell 2, Vonhoff 2. FG — 8-37. FT — 6-23.
