A slight uptick in Hoquiam’s offensive fortunes wasn’t sufficient to produce the first Grizzly girls basketball victory.
Well-balanced Cascade Christian handed the Grizzlies a 51-41 loss in a non-league girls basketball game Tuesday night at Hoquiam Square Garden.
Coming off two miserable shooting performances in road losses to Kingston and Shelton, the Grizzlies (0-4) connected at a respectable 35 percent clip from the field on Tuesday.
But HHS coach Mark Maxfield wasn’t thrilled with his team’s 26 turnovers, nor with some of his team’s decision-making. Hoquiam’s penchant for fouling (two starters fouled out) would have been more damaging had Cascade Christian been even passable from the line. The Cougars (2-1) hit only 12 of 35 free throws.
“As a team, we’re still struggling with some fundamental things that I, as a coach, haven’t been emphasizing enough,” Maxfield said. “We’ll get there, but we’re not there yet and that’s frustrating. Maybe playing up (in classification in non-leaguers) has hurt our confidence a little bit.”
Hoquiam senior wing Karlie Krohn led all scorers with 16 points. Junior teammate Maya Jump finished with nine points (seven in the first half), but no other Grizzly tallied more than five.
Cascade Christian enjoyed major advantages in balance and depth. Eight players divided up the Cougar scoring, led by junior post Gabi Miller’s 11 points.
Hoquiam was as close as four points, at 17-13, on Jump’s conventional three-point play at the 4:11 mark of the third quarter.
Cascade Christian’s Alex Teifke banked in a 3-point shot (one of two treys she knocked in off the glass) to trigger a 12-4 Cougar spurt that closed out the first half.
Using their superior size to create inside opportunities, the Cougars pulled away to as much as a 20-point lead late in the third quarter. The Grizzlies were never again closer than the final margin.
Rylee Vonhof led Hoquiam rebounders with eight. Maxfield cited Jordan Cox for reserve play.
The Grizzlies make the short trip across Myrtle Street to face rival Aberdeen on Thursday.
C. Christian 9 20 14 8 — 51
Hoquiam 5 12 10 14 — 41
Cascade Christian (51) — McCreary 3, Lorenz 10, Ashley Teifke 4, Alex Teifke 9, Miller 11, Pearson 10, Bartlett 2, Nohr 2, Tveter, Radcliffe. FG — 18-46 (.391). FT — 12-35.
Hoquiam (41) – Jade Cox 2, Jump 9, Bagwell 3, Krohn 16, Vonhof 2, German 5, Strom, Jordan Cox 4, Bogdanovich, Delahanty, Mazariegos. FG — 17-49 (.347). FT — 5-10.
JV — Hoquiam 52, Cascade Christian 20.
