Hudson’s Bay holds off host Capital to win 3A girls district quarterfinal, 51-43

If Capital High School’s 51-43 loss to visiting Hudson’s Bay in a Class 3A West Central/Southwest Bi-District tournament girls quarterfinal basketball game Friday proved nothing else, it was the depth of the tournament.

The Cougars, ranked 12th in the WIAA’s RPI, earned the top seed from the South Sound Conference after running through the league with a 13-1 record.

They received a bye straight through to the quarters. But their reward was a matchup with a tall, athletic, aggressive No. 16 Eagles team loaded with underclass talent.

“They were athletic and quick, we had a harder time on the boards,” said Capital coach Tiffany Twiddy, who earlier this week was named the 3A SSC coach of the year in her first season with the Cougars. “On defense, they were really aggressive, but our girls did a nice job of moving the ball around.”

Junior forward Kamelai Powell led Hudson’s Bay (18-5) with 17 points while sophomore forward Jaydia Martin added 14 and sophomore point guard Paytin Ballard 12.

The Eagles, who started only one senior, guaranteed themselves a spot in the 3A state regionals and a date with fellow Greater Saint Helen’s League member Prairie – 81-37 winners over Yelm on Friday night – Tuesday.

The game was scheduled to take place in Puyallup, but will likely be switched to a neutral site in the Vancouver area.

Hudson’s Bay’s late season success hasn’t come easy. Sophomore standout Aniyah Hampton – All-GSHL a year ago as a freshman – returned to the team from an Achilles injury, then promptly broke her arm.

Capital meets Spanaway Lake (10-11) at 7:45 p.m. Tuesday at Rogers of Puyallup in a loser-out game that will follow a contest with similar stakes between Bonney Lake (8-12) and No. 14 Yelm (16-7) that begins at 6 p.m.

“I feel pretty confident, I like the matchup,” Twiddy said of a Sentinels team her staff has scouted recently. “They didn’t perform very well against Gig Harbor in their first district game. But, bottom line, we’ve got to come out and play or we’re not going to get it.”

Martin’s point total was seven short of her Clark County-leading 21.4 average, but she scored six of Hudson’s Bay’s final eight points as the Eagles pulled away in the final four minutes.

The lead changed hands 10 times in the early going until a layup by Martin put Hudson’s Bay ahead to stay a minute into the second quarter, 20-19. The bucket sparked an 11-0 run that gave the Eagles their largest lead of the night, 29-19, midway through the second.

Despite contending with the 5-foot-11 Martin and 5-10 Powell and Hudson’s Bay’s busy hands in the passing lanes, Capital (16-5) itself played aggressive defense and nailed eight three-point shots on the night to hang around.

Usual long-range bomber Nicole Lindblom fell victim to early foul trouble – picking up her third just before the end of the first quarter – and a Hudson’s Bay game plan that ran multiple defenders at her whenever she tried to line up a trey. She finished with just three points, on a shot from beyond the arc early in the third quarter.

“When Nicole got in foul trouble, some girls stepped up and did a nice job,” Twiddy said. “She stayed engaged on the bench, cheering on her teammates.”

Point guard Kendall Hooper picked up the slack with four 3-pointers before halftime. She wound up the Cougars second-leading scorer with those 12 points, right behind senior guard Raegan Henry’s 13.

Hudson’s Bay never quite pulled away in the second half.

Capital put the pressure on when, down 43-40 midway through the final period, they five times had the ball with a chance to tie or cut the lead to one. Three missed shots and two turnovers spoiled the opportunity.

With 2:31 left, Martin drove from the top of the key for a layup, followed by an assist from her to a cutting Powell that made it 47-40, forcing Capital to foul late in an effort to get more possessions.

The game was delayed in the final minute when Henry suffered a cut slamming face first into the shoulder of an Eagle while attempting to get the ball back. Capital was hopeful she will be able to play against Spanaway Lake.

Twiddy didn’t see the loss as without positives.

“They were a great team and I’m proud of how we fought against them,” she said. “There were many moments where we could have given up, but we didn’t.”