MERIDIAN — The Port Angeles girls basketball team rode a huge third quarter to beat Meridian on Wednesday 41-31.
The Roughriders outscored Meridian 14-2 in the third quarter, taking a 36-27 lead into the fourth. They gave up just six points the entire second half.
Coach Michael Poindexter credited switching to a 2-3 zone for the Riders’ stifling second half. He said Meridian shot well in that first half.
“We played a lot of 1-3-1 in the first half. We did well with it, but they attacked it well,” he said. “They did a really nice job deflecting the ball. That’s the best 2-3 zone we’ve played in a long time.
“I was really proud of our second half effort on defense and on the boards,” Poindexter said.
The Roughriders won two out of three games at the Meridian tournament, improving their season record to 5-4 (2-0 in Olympic League).
Lindsay Smith led the Riders with 14 points, while Teanna Clark scored 11.
The Port Angeles girls play an exhibition game at 4 p.m. Friday against a traveling team from Australia.
Port Angeles 41, Meridian 31
PA 12 10 14 5 — 41
Mer. 9 16 2 4 — 31
Port Angeles (41) — Smith 14, Clark 11, Manson 5, Doherty 5, Bourland 3, Politika 3.
Quilcene 28, Crescent 27
QUILCENE — A game between North Olympic 1B rivals came down to a single point as Quilcene hung on for a 28-27 win.
Crescent was led by Naomii Sprague with 13 points and four steals. Lexi Dunavant had 16 rebounds and Kali Hopper six points.
The game was notable for the Loggers as Sprague scored her 1,000th career point. It was the first time a Loggers girls basketball player had scored 1,000 points since 2012.
Quilcene was led by Brylee Evans with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Chanel Greene had seven points and seven rebounds, while Cora Canterbury had 11 rebounds. Anna Sarnes also had five assists.
“Brylee took the lead today both on offense and defense, she really bailed us out, and our younger players are starting to step up,” said Quilcene coach Mark Thompson. He said it was Evans’ first career double-double.
“It was just a battle, it was back-and-forth all game,” said Crescent coach Brian Shimko. He said his players took the loss hard, but that it showed they care.
“I told my players it’s good to lose close games. It’s good that you’re upset. I want you to be upset,” Shimko said his players
Crescent next hosts Concrete at 2 p.m. Saturday. Quilcene hosts Concordia Christian at 5:30 p.m. Monday.
Quilcene 28, Crescent 27
Cres. 10 6 2 9 — 27
Quil. 6 9 7 6 — 28
Crescent (27) — Sprague 13, Hopper 6, M. Chester 4, Dunavant 3, G. Chester 1.
Quilcene (28) — Brylee Evans 11, Greene 7, Brianne Evans 6, Canterbury 4.
Adna 54, Neah Bay 49
ADNA — Neah Bay went up against one of the toughest 2B schools in the state and hung tough, losing a close one to Adna 54-49.
Adna, which plays at a higher classification than Neah Bay, is 9-1 on the season and played in the state championship game last year. It was the second loss of the year for the defending 1B state champion Neah Bay, one to Adna and the other to 4A Mercer Island.
The teams went into the fourth quarter with Adna clinging to a 37-36 lead. Adna’s McKenna Torrey scored 13 points in the fourth to lead the Pirates to the win.
The Red Devils were led by Qwaapeys Greene with 16. Cerise Moss scored 13, while Wiinuk Martin had nine points and nine rebounds. Angel Halttunen had eight points and seven rebounds.
Neah Bay (8-2) next plays at Crescent on Jan. 9.
Adna 54, Neah Bay 49
NB 12 4 20 13 — 49
Adna 15 10 12 17 — 54
Neah Bay (49) — Q. Greene 16, Cerise Moss 13, W. Martin 9, A. Halttunen 8, Caylee Moss 3, H. Martin.
Forks at MVC tournament
MOUNT VERNON — The Forks girls went 1-2 at the Mount Vernon Christian tournament.
The Spartans crushed La Conner 63-23 on Monday, lost to Pateros 47-40 on Tuesday and lost 62-48 to Crosspoint Christian on Wednesday.
Coach David Hurn said he watched the Spartans improve during the three-game tournament.
“I feel we’re definitely a better team than we were a couple of days ago,” Hurn said. “We just need to string together four good quarters of basketball. We have to be able to put together a complete game.”
Hurn said the Spartans were right in the game in much of the contests against Pateros and Crosspoint. The Spartans had a halftime lead against Pateros, but started off slowly in the third quarter. The team got off to a rough start against Crosspoint early.
Bailey Johnson shined during the tournament with two huge games. She scored 29 against La Conner and 24 against Pateros. She also had 11 against Crosspoint. Avery Dilley was consistent, scoring 12 against La Conner, 11 against Pateros and nine against Crosspoint. Chloe Gaydeski scored 10 against Crosspoint, while Kailyn Crowder scored seven.
The Spartans (3-5) begin Pacific 2B league play Friday at Ilwaco.
Boys Basketball Port Angeles at Yakima SunDome
YAKIMA — Playing without starters Brody Pierce and Hunter Flores for most of their two games, the Port Angeles boys dropped a pair this week at the Yakima SunDome, though the second game against Toppenish came down to the final minute.
The Roughriders lost to a good Cascade Christian team 61-23 on Monday and lost to Toppenish 68-59 on Tuesday in a game that was closer than the score indicated.
In Monday’s loss, the Riders shot 9-for-42 in that Cascade Christian loss as their shots simply refused to drop all game long. Kevin Ruble said he was able to get a lot of his bench players in the game. “It’ll pay dividends in the long run,” he said.
Ruble also said post player Brock Hope, who had been out for a couple of weeks with a shoulder injury was able to play in the Yakima games.
David Benoit led the team with 10 points.
Pierce, who sprained his ankle in a game before Christmas, tried to play against Cascade Christian, but took a knee in the torso and had to come out. His ankle also stiffened up and he was not able to play against Toppenish.
Ruble said the Toppenish game was completely different as the Riders’ shooting was much improved.
“What a difference it makes when you make your shots,” he said. The game was tied at halftime and the Riders were down three points in the final 45 seconds and had a chance to tie, but couldn’t get that key basket. At that point, Port Angeles was forced to foul.
“Give Toppenish credit, they made their free throws down the stretch. That was a really good game,” he said.
The Riders had good balance against Toppenish. Benoit again led the team with 16, while Jude Wallace had 10, Abe Brenkman nine and Kielar Point and John Ruddell eight each.
Port Angeles will play a traveling team from Australia at 5:30 p.m. Friday in an exhibition game.
Quilcene 75, Crescent 42
QUILCENE — Quilcene’s size was a factor as the Rangers ran off with a 75-42 win over Crescent.
“We did a lot of good things. We really played our tails off, diving on loose balls, hustling on defense, being physical rebounding. We just aren’t real big,” said Crescent coach Chris Ferrier.
“Our guys really have a lot of guts, they just keep playing hard and battling. The middle two quarters were two of the best we have played the entire season and it gives us more forward progress in our larger goal of continuous improvement,” Ferrier said. “Our guys, [I] can’t say it enough. They’re tough. They’re battling. We just have to keep improving and focus on the process.”
For the Rangers, Eli Allen shot 9-for-9 from the floor and scored 22 points. Robert Evans had 13 points, Jayden Love had eight points, 12 rebounds, six assists and eight steals. Aiden Cate had 10 points and seven rebounds, while Jayden Minish had six points, eight rebounds and six assists.
“The Rangers played well tonight, with everyone on the team contributing. We ran our offense and worked to keep the tempo of the game even,” said coach Joni Crowell.
Crescent hosts Concrete on Saturday, while Quilcene hosts Concordia Christian at 7 p.m.
Quilcene 75, Crescent 42
Cres. 8 16 12 6 — 42
Quil. 21 24 10 20 — 75
Crescent (42) — J. Sprague 16, L. Sprague 7, Mason 10, Chartier 2, Holmes 2, L. Harris 2, M. Harris 2.
Quilcene (75) — Allen 22, Evans 13, Cate 10, Love 8, Hames 7, Minish 6, Canterbury 3, Thibodeau-Kjosen 3, Figueroa 3, K. Kjosen 1.
Wrestling East Jefferson at The Rock
VASHON — The East Jefferson boys wrestling team had two athletes place at The Rock tournament held Tuesday on Vashon Island.
Manaseh Lanphear Ramirez placed second at 150 pounds, going 2-1 on the day with two pins. He lost in the championship by a 12-7 decision. Grady White went 3-1 at 165 pounds to also finish second. He won two of his matches by pin and a third by a 4-3 decision.
