White River girls rally after early deficit to win 2A district title; Fife boys couldn’t find shot against North Kitsap

The White River High School girls basketball team rallied to take the 2A West Central District tournament title with a 56-47 win over Port Angeles.

Early on in the first quarter, the Hornets found themselves down to the Roughriders. But in the closing seconds of the first quarter, Georgia Lavinder knocked down her second 3-pointer of the quarter to tie it back up.

“We’ve got some new kids and kids that have done this before,” said White River coach Chris Gibson. “We knew that it would be a tough night. I’m really proud of my kids and Port Angeles is a really good team.”

The first quarter ended in a 16-16 tie after Lavinder’s shot. But afterward, the Hornet defense settled down and the offense heated up.

Only 17 points were given up over the next two quarters by the Hornets. In that span, the offense put up 29 as they reached a comfortable lead heading into the final period.

“It was fast paced out there,” Lavinder said. “They had high pressure up front and we had to get the ball down the court. We definitely got through their 1-3-1 [defense], got the ball to the high post and made smart passes.”

Lavinder would lead the Hornets with 16 points. Teammate and sister Sofia Lavinder also provided late insurance as she made five-of-eight free throws in the fourth quarter when the Roughriders were fouling to preserve time.

“I think the big key was that we came out more aggressive in the second half,” Sofia said. “Their defense was pushing our offense out, so coming out in the second half more aggressive really opened up our shooters and our drive.”

Sofia finished her night with 12 points scored.

And freshman Kara Marecle finished the game with 13 points and some of which were tough shots. One such shot came after nearly losing the ball at half court, recovering it and pushing through the Roughrider defense for the lay in.

Another was Sam Fiedler. Fiedler may not have the flashiest scoring line with two points in the contest, but she helped crash the boards and get rebounds.

“Height is always an issue for us, we are pretty small,” Gibson said. “But we got some kids that came in and did a nice job. Fiedler and Taylee Goethals banged on the boards for us. We’re deep. Fiedler came in and gave us a quick bucket and she works hard.”

Emilia Long was the game’s high scorer for the Roughriders, finishing with 17 points.

The win assures the Hornets a spot in the regional round of the state playoffs. However, their spot is unknown as the RPI rankings will determine who and when they will play next.

2A BOYS DISTRICT CHAMPIONSHIP

After a wild game that sent Fife High School to the 2A West Central District tournament, they could not find their shot and lost to North Kitsap 50-37.

Despite a defense that kept the game close in the first half, the Trojan offense could not generate anything much more than Eli Graham’s nine points.

“I give North Kitsap a ton of credit but we couldn’t shoot the ball,” said Fife coach Mark Schelbert. “Normally we are a better shooting team, and if we don’t shoot well, then that hurts everything. We missed a couple of layups here and there, and their length bothered us.”

Graham was the only Trojan to make a 3-point shot in the game. The Trojan defense held the Vikings down to a 23-16 lead at the half, but nothing came of it as they couldn’t execute.

“We had pretty good balance through most of the year. But we couldn’t get anyone going on the outside or inside,” Shelbert said. “The defense gave us a chance, but we kept waiting for something to fall and it just never happened.”

The Vikings were led by Zac Olmsted’s game-high 17 points. Kai Warren also threw in 13 points.

“For any period of time, nothing was good enough,” Schelbert said. “Our effort, at times was good; and at other times, they out worked us. That’s the result.”

Despite the loss, the Trojans will find themselves in the regional round of the state playoffs. Against whom and when is still to be determined by the RPI rankings.

This story was originally published February 18, 2018 at 10:09 AM with the headline "White River girls rally after early deficit to win 2A district title; Fife boys couldn’t find shot against North Kitsap."