Lincoln falls short against Lakeside in 3A state tournament, 60-52

The Lincoln Abes have been good about seeing the Tacoma Dome come March. What they haven’t been particularly good at is winning once they get here.

It happened again on Wednesday, as the eighth-seeded Abes stayed close throughout before ultimately succumbing, 60-52, No. 9 Lakeside in a Class 3A first-round girls state game.

“Of course it’s not the finish we want,” Lincoln coach Jamila Jones said. “We’re going to get there. Going one and out at the Dome is not acceptable to me. I’m not going to let myself off the hook.”

Lincoln found itself in the must-win position after a regional loss last weekend to top-seeded Mead. That meant the Abes needed a first-day victory over the Lions to keep playing at the Dome.

Despite getting 21 points from guard Ciona Wells, in the end Lincoln couldn’t finish again. Wednesday was the Abes seventh appearance at the Tacoma Dome in the last eight tournaments played.

The Covid-19 pandemic erased all state playoffs a year ago.

In those appearances, Lincoln has just a single fifth-place trophy to show for them, accomplished in 2017 when the Abes made the semifinals before losing its final two games. Since then, Lincoln is now 0-5 in games played at the Tacoma Dome.

“When we go battle, I can take that,” Jones said. “We played hard for 32 minutes.”

For most of the first half against Lakeside, the effort paid off in a lead. Though the game stayed close throughout the first 16 minutes, the Abes held a lead on five separate occasions during the second quarter.

The last advantage, 26-25, came with 1 minute, 58 seconds left in the first half when Deandra Woods-Singleton stepped outside the lane and sank a short turnaround shot.

The Lions responded on the ensuing possession, getting a 3-pointer from Claire O’Connor with 1:37 left in the half to put the Lions back in front, 28-26. Lincoln would never lead again.

O’Connor’s shot sparked an 8-3 run to end the second quarter as Lakeside forged a 33-29 advantage at the half. It was a lead that grew to eight, 47-39, by the end of the third quarter.

But the Abes had one challenge left in them. Jaleigh Robinson scored five of her 10 points to carry a 7-2 spurt that got Lincoln back within three with 5:52 to play, 49-46. On the next two possessions, though, with opportunities to tie the game or at least close the gap further, Lincoln threw the ball away.

“Finishing possessions,” Jones said. “That’s something we’ve got to get better at. We talk about it. We coach it up. It’s something we’ve got to be better at.”

With Lincoln unable to capitalize on those chances midway through the fourth quarter, the Lions were able to reassert themselves. Mia Broom made the last field goal of her 20-point effort with 4:42 left, then O’Connor made the second of two free throws and the lead was back to six, 52-46.

O’Connor went on to make five of seven from the free throw line in the fourth and finish with a game-high 22 points to go with 17 rebounds and four assists.

That combination with Broom and Hannah Dickinson adding 16 points and seven rebounds was more than enough to offset the four 3-pointers and 21 points from Wells and company.

“In the end, we’ve got to be a little more tough,” Jones said. “On any day, we’ve got to find a way to get wins at the Dome. I’ve been doing this for a little bit now, to come down here and one and done is not acceptable for me. But, we’ve got a young squad. For most of the year we started three sophomores and two juniors. With those five coming back, I think we’re going to be alright.”