Maxwell, Gig Harbor girls beat Peninsula, 67-28

The Gig Harbor High girls basketball team had little trouble with crosstown rival Peninsula on Friday night, knocking off the Seahawks, 67-28, to push Gig Harbor’s record to a perfect 4-0 in the Class 3A South Sound Conference.

Gig Harbor sophomore Brynna Maxwell led the Tides with 23 points.

“Brynna played really well,” said Gig Harbor coach Megan Murray. “She came out and was on fire right from the start, and played really well defensively.”

It’s the second straight season Gig Harbor has beat Peninsula by a big margin.

“Naturally, they’re our crosstown rival, so it gets the girls kind of pumped up,” Murray said.

Murray pointed to Gig Harbor’s defense as the main reason for the win and team’s hot start this season.

“Defensively, it’s been a huge focus of ours,” Murray said. “Taking away their strengths — the girls are really good at that — making them go to other things. Our defensive pressure has impressed me.”

Murray said the team’s good start is critical in developing confidence early in the season.

“If we’re able to do that and take it one game at a time, it builds our confidence,” she said. “We have a goal of going to districts and state. If we can have a long term goal but be able to not look too far ahead, it really helps to break up the season. When it happens every game, looking at what we need to build on and improve on, instead of just looking at big picture and looking too far down the road.”

Maxwell, senior guard Emily Shields and junior forward Maddie Willett make up the core that has guided the Tides to their fast start.

Gig Harbor will get a short break before it gears up for the Cloud 9 Christmas Tournament.

Gig Harbor will face Ferndale on Dec. 27 at 3 p.m. at Lynden High School. Gig Harbor will then play Snohomish on Dec. 28 at 4:30 p.m.

Snohomish bounced Gig Harbor from the Class 4A state tournament last season and the Tides will be hoping for some payback.

“The girls are pumped to play Snohomish again,” Murray said.

This story was originally published December 21, 2016 at 1:56 PM with the headline "Maxwell, Gig Harbor girls beat Peninsula, 67-28."