Amid a flurry of blowouts, Sumner aims for a title run behind Deaver twins: “they’re bought in”
Sumner’s girls basketball program preaches “13 as one,” and won’t take a single play off. But the offensive contributions of twin-sister duo Alyson and Catelyn Deaver, mathematically, are enough on their own.
In the opening eight games of their senior seasons, Alyson’s averaging over 25 points per game, and Catelyn has added another 15.
So when coach Katie Hyppa’s defense allows just 38 points per game, the Deaver twins can outscore opposing teams by themselves.
That’s not exactly the goal, Alyson admits. Some of the Spartans, now 7-1 overall and 5-0 in the 4A SPSL, played together as early as the fourth grade. There’s a priority to share the ball with teammates, and a nearly-decade-old chemistry to execute it.
The pandemic canceled state tournaments around high schools last spring, but Sumner remains convinced that a run for the 4A title was imminent.
Their margins of victory regularly exceed the 50, 60, and 70-point mark, and there’s reason to believe in the Spartans locker room that, come March, their run to the trophy may finally transpire.
Hyppa, now in her first season as Sumner’s head coach, worked as an assistant last spring. There’s a different staff, but the Spartans haven’t skipped a beat: last season, Sumner finished 7-1 in a shortened spring season, which is exactly where they are now.
“They’ve bought into what we’re trying to do,” Hyppa said. “Every play (is) as intense as the previous, and as intense as the next one, right? … We say it all the time. Don’t take plays off. Play the full court, (and) put 32 minutes together.
“We want to put the whole game together defensively, and there’s a lot of pieces that go into that. It takes the whole team.”
Aside from the Deaver’s combined 40 points per game, both play key roles in Sumner’s new-look defensive system. Praised by Hyppa for their high basketball IQs, Alyson alters shots and frustrates opposing game plans. Catelyn, often utilized on the wings, clamps down on the ball and leads the team in defensive rebounds.
But Sumner’s starting five extends beyond the reach of six-foot Catelyn and six-foot-one Alyson. Senior point guard Kaylee Cooper contributes with nine points, four assists, and three steals per game. Sophomore guard Lainee Houillon, a 4A SPSL second-teamer in her freshman season last spring, adds 15 points, six rebounds, four assists, and four steals.
“We’ve been holding back so much potential, and we’re just waiting until March to finally see what we can do,” Alyson said. “And this is our last shot at it.”
Even if Alyson and Catelyn have just a fraction of a season remaining in Sumner uniforms, their careers together aren’t ending soon. Following in the footsteps of their father, who played collegiate basketball at Seattle University, the Deaver twins committed to Dixie State University in Utah, now a rival of the local Redhawks in the Division-I Western Athletic Conference.
Sharing the court with a twin sister brings advantages and disadvantages, Alyson told The News Tribune. Naturally, they’re consistently compared, she said.
“But we definitely have a telepathy-type thing,” Alyson added. “Our passing game is just so strong. We always know where we’re going to be on the court, like in positions. Sometimes, we go to the same spot, because we just think the same.”
Alyson tore her ACL during a 2018 summer league game, and throughout a two-year recovery period, Catelyn’s role on the floor became more of an independent one. In her words, she had to rely on other teammates, and more on herself, too.
“Our team just works really well together,” Catelyn said. “We just have such a good bond with each other. And so I feel like that works really well on the court. We all have a good mindset.
“We’re in such good shape as a team. And I feel like if we just keep up our good attitude, good mindset, and keep conditioning and pushing, we’re gonna get there.”
Sumner’s lone loss came to the out-of-league Tahoma Bears on Dec. 3, which remained competitive in the final minutes and resulted in a seven-point defeat, 68-61.
That’s when their active seven-game winning streak began. The Spartans beat Kentwood by 23 points on Dec. 11, and four days later, beat 4A SPSL-rival Graham Kapowsin by 81.
Then came a 60-point victory over Jackson on Dec. 18. On Jan. 6, the Spartans took down Bellarmine Prep by a convincing 26 points. That’s their narrowest margin of victory since.
“We try not to let it (alter the game plan),” Hyppa said of her team’s weekly routs. “We’re worried about what we can get better on, and there’s plenty of things for us to improve on. … We can get better at something as small as foot positioning. You can take a win that’s 40-50 points, and when we break down the film, we notice the foot positioning might have been off by a couple inches, and that can make all the difference in the world down the road.
“We (want to) pay attention to the little things, (and) be brilliant at the basics.”
Sumner’s remaining four games on the regular-season slate all include teams they’ve already defeated, and by a combined 180 points, to boot.
“It’s been a long time since Sumner has been to the Tacoma Dome, so that’s one (goal),” Hyppa said. “But right now, it’s one day at a time… and not to get too far ahead of ourselves. Being present is something I try (to) tell them every single day. And hopefully, it carries over.”
This story was originally published January 19, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
