Sumner takes Camas’ best shot, hangs on for 66-57 overtime win in 4A quarterfinals
The Sumner Spartans found themselves looking for the right time, not the longest time.
Meanwhile, Jadey Parrott almost couldn’t believe it when her time came.
Both Parrott and the Spartans made that time count on Thursday, finally fending off the Camas Papermakers in overtime, 66-57, in the final Class 4A state girls basketball quarterfinal game of the day at the Tacoma Dome.
The win sends Sumner into a 5:30 p.m. semifinal against Pasco on Friday evening.
“The first game’s out of the way,” Sumner coach Katie Hyppa said. “Hopefully tomorrow it won’t be quite the adjustment there. We’re in the Final Four. We’ve been telling them, there’s no better place to play than in the Dome. Soak up every minute. Even the tough ones. The whole town’s here for you right now.”
There were plenty of tough minutes against the Papermakers.
Until Sumner (23-2) held Camas (17-9) scoreless in the extra four minutes, finally taking the lead for good on two Parrott free throws with 1 minute, 21 seconds left to play, the Spartans had held the lead briefly on eight previous occasions, and for a total of only 3 minutes and 38 seconds.
“Don’t tell me that,” Sumner coach Katie Hyppa said. “Hey, at this time of year a win’s a win. You’ve just gotta be on top of the scoreboard at the end. It isn’t what we prefer, but I’ll take it.”
Just to get the opportunity to lead when it ultimately counted, the Spartans needed Parrott to step into her own hero moment. Sure, she put Sumner ahead for good with those two free throws in overtime.
But with six seconds left in regulation, there Parrott was standing at the free throw line with two shots in front of her and a one-point deficit staring back at her from the big scoreboard behind the rim at the Dome.
That’s when the 5-foot-9 senior’s mind returned to Thursday morning, when the Spartans watched the Auburn Trojans step to the free throw line against No. 1 and unbeaten Garfield in a 3A boys quarterfinal. The Trojans made those free throws – to tie the game at the end of regulation and to maintain a lead during overtime in their upset victory over the Bulldogs.
“During that Auburn boys game, I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I would be so nervous to shoot those free throws,’ and then I ended up in the same situation,” Parrott said. “I just knew I had to make at least one to tie it up.”
That didn’t happen with the first shot, which hit the rim and careened badly off to the right side. Parrott’s teammates converged on their teammate at the line, encouraging her. And Parrott made the correct adjustment, making the second to tie the game at 57-57 with 6.1 seconds left.
“To be honest, I missed both my free throws in my last game, too,” Parrott said. “But I just felt more confident and remembered that all these people are here supporting us. After that first one, I knew something was off. So I better fix that on this second one or this is going to be the end of my career. I better step up.”
Parrott’s tying free throw turned out to be the second big play in Sumner’s survival. The first came just over two minutes earlier when Camas sophomore Reagan Jamison set an illegal screen during a Papermakers offensive possession and was called for her fifth foul.
That sent Jamison to the Camas bench for the remainder of the game having scored a game-high 25 points and grabbing nine rebounds. Jamison had been the answer to many of those quick lead changes in regulation that kept Sumner from gaining any traction or getting away.
Without her, the Papermakers managed just two points total over the final 2:03 of regulation and all of overtime.
Alyson Deaver led the Sumner scoring attack with 20 points, to go with her seven rebounds. Kaylee Cooper made five 3-pointers for the Spartans and finished with 17 points while Parrott chipped in with 12.
