PORT ANGELES — The Peninsula College women’s basketball team rode the strength of a 21-5 run over 9:35 of the first half and survived a second-half comeback to drop Olympic 64-58.
Saturday night’s game served as a homecoming for two Port Angeles High School players, Olympic’s freshman guard Macy Walker and freshman wing Mariah Frazier.
Foul trouble limited Frazier to just two first half points, while Walker doled out three assists but struggled from the floor, hitting just 1 of 5 shots for two points at halftime.
Frazier finished with 11 points and five rebounds while Walker was held scoreless in the second half.
Peninsula (3-2, 6-9) was able to build their lead on the ability to draw fouls on strong drives to the hoop by Madison Pilster and superb rebounding from sources both likely: 6-footer Gabi Fenumiai had four first half boards, and unlikely: 5-foot-3 point guard Olivia Henderson hauled down five first-half rebounds and 5-foot-4 guard Miranda Schmillen scored all six of her points and posted four of her five rebounds in the opening half.
Pilster notched seven of her 14 points and Fenumiai chipped in with seven of her 13 to put the Pirates up 36-23 at halftime.
Alison Knowles, also a Port Angeles graduate, had six of her game-high 15 points and four of her five rebounds in the first as well for Peninsula.
Olympic opened with a 14-4 run after multiple Pirate turnovers over the first 5:54 of the second half to pull within three, 40-37 with 14:06 to play.
“Anytime you put added pressure on a game — and with the Hall of Fame ceremony and the two Port Angeles girls coming back, we knew there would be a big crowd — and things start to collapse a bit, it can cause more worry than it normally would,” Peninsula coach Alison Crumb, yet another Port Angeles graduate, said.
Peninsula was able to regroup and rebuild their lead on the strength of a pair of 3-point baskets from Pilster that made it 45-37 with 12:45 to play and 49-40 with 10:35 left in the game.
Henderson finished with a team-high 10 rebounds.
The Pirates were able to weather Fenumiai absence over the final portion of the game, as the physical center fouled out with 6:16 to play.
“She has to learn to be smart; because she is involved in so many plays, she will put herself in a position to be called for fouls,” Crumb said.
“So these freshman mistakes like reaching for balls and getting a little extra greedy; she needs to clean that up, and she knows that.
“We need her.”
Emily Flinn came off the bench for Fenumiai and received praise from Crumb for being “scrappy and willing to get her hands dirty.”
Peninsula held their largest lead of the second half at 62-50 with 1:43 to play.
The Pirates will seek their third straight North Division win on the road at Shoreline (1-4, 3-10) on Wednesday.
Peninsula 64, Olympic 58
Olympic 23 35— 58
Peninsula 36 28— 64
Individual scoring
Olympic (58)
Carper 13, Sunkel 11, Frazier 11, Chaney 10, Lindsey 9, Huggins 2, Walker 2.
Peninsula (64)
Knowles 15, Pilster 14, Fenuami 13, Schmillen 6, Brumbaugh 4, Flinn 4, Henderson 4, Fischer 3, Schwimmer 1.
