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1A District IV Playoffs
Elma 63, Castle Rock 16
Elma’s defense made it difficult for Castle Rock to get the ball past half court as the Eagles cruised to a 63-16 victory over the Rockets Thursday night in Elma in the opening round of the 1A District IV tournament.
Elma didn’t waste any time taking control of the game, forcing six steals in the first quarter and starting the game on a 14-1 run.
The Eagles also didn’t have to rely on hitting jumpers to fuel their offense, using steals to get open looks at the rim in transition in the early going. Jalyn Sackrider found ways to finish at the rim in transition, leading the Eagles with 19 points.
Elma head coach Lisa Johnson said she was pleased with the energy her team displayed in front of a loud hometown crowd.
“Defense is what we start with. Our defense is our catalyst for us, so that’s how we’re going to come out,” she said. “We came out with good energy and its great to play your last home game when its packed and full. That’s what small-town basketball is all about.”
Elma’s defensive energy allowed the Eagles to come away with 20 steals on the night, but even when the ball pressure wasn’t resulting in steals, the Rockets still struggled to make passes and committed another 10 dead-ball turnovers.
The Eagles offense continued to cruise while their opponents struggled, allowing the Eagles to take a 34-7 lead into halftime.
Elma’s Jillian Bieker, left, and Quin Mikel, right, double team Castle Rock’s Rachel Anderson with a full-court press in the first quarter. Elma nabbed 20 steals in its 63-16 win over Castle Rock on Thursday. (Hasani Grayson | Grays Harbor News Group)
Kayli Johnson had a tough assignment defensively, guarding Castle Rock’s primary ball-handler, Rachel Anderson. The senior guard came into Thursday’s contest averaging nearly eight points a game but was held to three points on a 0-for-6 shooting night.
Kali Johnson said grabbing a big lead early is a good confidence builder for the team as it makes its way through the district tournament bracket.
“It gives us a lot of confidence knowing that we could get that big a lead in the first game of districts,” she said. “For us to get a lead like that, I think we can go far.”
Johnson’s last-second layup gave the Eagles a 54-14 lead heading into the fourth quarter, which allowed the clock to run the final eight minutes of the game.
The Eagles pulled their regular starters from the game in the fourth quarter and left Molly Johnston in the game for most the fourth quarter. Johnston chipped in with seven points and grabbed eight boards.
Johnston has been easing back into her regular role after injuring her ankle early in the season and Coach Johnson said it was good to see her look like her old self on the court
“She got some great minutes tonight. That’s the first time she’s played a full four quarters since she got injured,” she said. “She was getting gassed, but she caught a second wind and got a couple of steals and started doing some of the stuff that we’re used to her doing.”
The Eagles will be watching the result of a game between Tenino and Stevenson on Friday to determine their next opponent in districts.
Elma isn’t sure which team it will face on Tuesday, but Coach Johnson isn’t planning on changing the game plan based on the opponent.
She said ball pressure will be a theme for her team on its tournament run.
“It’s just a matter of what defense we’re gong to come out in but we’re always going to apply pressure,” she said. “That’s what Elma basketball is.”
Castle Rock 3 4 7 2 – 16
Elma 18 16 29 9 – 63
Top Player: Elma — Johnson ( 6 pts., 4 ast., 4 stl.), Johnston (7 pts., 8 reb.), Sackrider (19 pts. 5 reb.)
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1A District IV Tournment
King’s Way Christian 70, Hoquiam 36
A night of poor shooting from both the field and the line sunk Hoquiam’s chances early on in a 70-36 loss at King’s Way Christian in the first round of the 1A District IV tournament on Thursday.
The Grizzlies struggled to finish at the rim in the first quarter and only hit one shot from the field in the opening eight minutes.
On the other end of the floor, King’s Way Christian had the shooting touch and ended the night with 11 3-pointers.
Hoquiam had a difficult time containing Gage Koenders who put up a game-best 18 points. Koenders also led the Knights in 3-pointers, sinking four of his attempts from beyond the arc.
The Grizzlies’ shots started to fall in the second quarter, yet they still found themselves down 31-15 at the half.
“We missed a lot of easy shots early. We didn’t get a chance to shoot around after a two-hour bus ride,” Hoquiam head coach Curtis Eccles said. “That’s not an excuse, but we didn’t shoot the ball well early and King’s Way Christian is a really good shooting team.”
On a night where the Hoquiam offense never found a rhythm, Matt Brown was the only Grizzly in double figures with 11 points. Rayyon Dayton led Hoquiam with 12 rebounds.
The Grizzlies will head back to King’s Way Christian’s gym on Saturday to face Stevenson in an elimination game in the consolation bracket. Tip off is scheduled for 1 p.m.
King’s Way Christian 14 17 22 17 – 70
Hoquiam 3 12 8 13 – 36
Top Players: Hoquiam — Dayton (8 pts., 12 reb.), Bryson Eccles (9 reb.), Brown (11 pts.), Cameron Bumstead (10 pts.); King’s Way Christian — Bady Metz (17 pts.), Gage Koenders (18 pts.)
2B District IV Tournament
Willapa Valley 48, Wahkiakum 33
Willapa Valley had its lowest scoring output of the season, no matter, the Vikings defense held Wahkiakum to a season low in a 48-33 second-round victory in the 2B District IV Tournament on Friday at Rochester High School.
“That was the best defensive effort we’ve put up in a long time,” Willapa Valley head coach Jay Pearson said of his team’s ability to hold the Mules (9-13) to a season-low in points.
Willapa Valley (17-4) jumped out to a 19-10 lead after the first quarter against Wahkiakum’s triangle-and-two defense,
But the Mules switched to a man-pressure defense in the second quarter, holding the Vikings to just two points in the process.
Willapa Valley’s offense continued to struggle in the third quarter, scoring just six points, allowing Wahkiakum to nearly erase the first-half deficit.
The Mules cut the Vikings lead to five points with three minutes left in the contest, but senior guard Matt Pearson scored off a pick play to give Willapa Valley some breathing room.
“That was a play we used three times (to success) in the fourth quarter,” Coach Pearson said. “That got our offense going again.”
Willapa Valley outscored Wahkiakum 16-6 in the fourth quarter.
Matt Pearson led a balanced Vikings scoring offense with 14 points. He also tied with Chad Flemitis with a team-leading eight rebounds.
Logan Walker scored 10 points and grabbed five boards for Willapa Valley.
The third-seeded Vikings advance to face No. 2 Toutle Lake on Saturday (time and location to be determined).
It’s a team Coach Pearson is familiar with.
“Both programs know each other very well,” he said. “Should be a heck of a contest and the winner goes to state.”
Wahkiakum 10 2 15 6 — 33
Willapa Valley 19 7 6 16 — 48
Top Players: Willapa Valley — M. Pearson (14 pts., 8 reb.), Walker (10 pts., 5 reb.), Flemitis (7 pts., 8 reb.), Beau Buchanan (6 pts.), Peter Hamilton (6 pts., 5 asst., 4 stl.), Carter Pearson (5 pts.).
— Ryan Sparks, Grays Harbor News Group
