Gig Harbor, Peninsula basketball teams to go through consolation ladder in districts

All four basketball teams for Gig Harbor and Peninsula high schools have reached the postseason and played their first games in the month long tournament.

Where some teams came out of the game dominant, other teams played much closer games that came down to the end.

Here’s how each team fared in the early goings of the playoffs.

GIG HARBOR BOYS LET LEAD SLIP IN LOSS TO MOUNT TAHOMA

Coming off a very successful regular season, the Tides were rewarded with a first-round bye and had extra rest for their game against Mount Tahoma in the Class 3A West Central/Southwest bi-district tournament.

Unfortunately, the Tides would let their lead slip away from them and lost 61-59.

As time wound down in the fourth quarter, the Tides were at one point up by 11 with four minutes to go. However, the T-Birds chipped away until they eventually tied with seconds left in the game.

After a late turnover, the T-Birds regained possession and Josh Joseph knocked down a runner to close out the game and give the Tides their first home loss of the season.

“It was tough. We couldn’t get a stop at the end. They did a good job and made free throws,” said coach Billy Landram. “We had a good chance to close it out, missed free throws. We were right there. They outplayed us the last four minutes of the game. You’ve got to keep playing.”

Despite the rough game, there were a few bright spots for the Tides in the game. Asher Raquiza dropped 20 including making a few 3-pointers before half time to keep momentum.

Zach Toglia also scored 13 in the effort as well.

Facing a tougher schedule now, the Tides will have to clean up any and all mistakes that they may have committed in their game against the T-Birds.

“This is a tough one. They’ll take the weekend to kind of regroup,” Landram said. “We’ll find out what we’re made of, that’s for sure.”

The Tides will have to bounce back in their game against Spanaway Lake on Feb. 19. If they win there, then they will tip off against league rivals Timberline or Peninsula at 7:45 p.m. Friday, Feb. 21 at Foss High School.

GIG HARBOR GIRLS HANG WITH UNDEFEATED BETHEL

Taking on Spanaway Lake, the Tides jumped out to an early lead and did not look back. Holding a lead by as much as 23 points, the Tides cruised to 55-40 victory.

Leading the charge was Megan Edwards, scoring 21 points and knocking down six three-point shots. Tate McReynolds also chipped in 11 points to help carry the load.

“We are probably playing our best basketball right now, which is always nice going into the playoffs,” said coach Mike Guinasso. “It was awesome... it was nice to have a pick-me-up game before going into the Bethel game.”

Things got more challenging for the Tides as they rolled up to a Bethel squad that had some rest and riding a perfect 20-0 before Friday’s game.

But the Tides stuck to what they know best: Playing defense. Throwing every defensive look they could at the Braves, the Tides held Bethel to a season-low 46 points.

It ultimately fell short, with Bethel coming out on top, 46-45, despite Edwards having another good night of shooting going 4-for-8 from behind the arc.

“Going into the next game, it’s going to be about defense. If we can play good defense, we should be able to beat anyone the rest of the way,” Guinasso said. “The biggest thing is that I hope people see that we’ll be a hard team to compete with… I think we deserve some respect and opened some eyes after that game.”

The Tides’ season will continue against Wilson in their matchup on Feb. 18. If Gig Harbor beats the Rams, its next opponent will either be Kelso or Peninsula, which will tip off at 6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 20 at Clover Park High School.

PENINSULA BOYS BEAT CENTRAL KITSAP ON MCVAY’S BUZZER BEATER

It doesn’t get more exciting than the finish the Seahawks had in their matchup against Central Kitsap, as a buzzer beater sent them into the next round.

Senior guard Cole McVay was the hero for his team as it was his three-pointer from the corner that put the Seahawks up 54-52 as time expired, ultimately sealing the deal.

Now the Seahawks had another challenge to face, an Evergreen team that finished 19-2 on the year and had a first-round bye.

Travelling down to Vancouver, the Seahawks never found an offensive groove and fell behind early. In fact, there was no answer for the Plainsmen’s Jaden Stanley who scored five of their first seven points in the game.

After a rough start, the Seahawks fell 77-54 to the Plainsmen, sending them over into the consolation bracket where their next game will be Feb. 19 against league rival Timberline.

If the Seahawks win there, then they will square up against either Spanaway Lake or cross-town rival Gig Harbor at 7:45 p.m. Friday, Feb. 21 at Foss High School.

PENINSULA GIRLS LOSE TO YELM

Unfortunately for the Seahawks, they came up just short against Maddie Plevyak-led Yelm, losing 74-71 in the opening round of districts.

All 71 points came from three separate players for the Seahawks; Piper Bauer scored 30, Lindsey Lovrovich had 21 and Renee Doss scored the final 20.

“It was a very familiar opponent, we already played them twice and played them tough both times,” coach Mike Schick said. “We hit a lot of good shots and played some good defense. Unfortunately, we had some mental lapses. At the end of the day we had our opportunity… the ball didn’t bounce our way.”

The Seahawks were particularly effective shooting from beyond the 3-point line, shooting 14-for-26. But as they look forward to their next game, the Seahawks are hoping to clean up the little things that didn’t go their way on defense.

Should the Seahawks defeat Kelso and continue their season on Feb. 18, their next game after that would be against either Gig Harbor or Wilson at 6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 20 at Clover Park High School.

This story was originally published February 18, 2020 at 6:00 AM.