Sumner stays undefeated with win over Emerald Ride in meeting of 4A SPSL division leaders

Ever since the fourth grade, at least while playing club basketball, Kawehi Borden never had to worry about Raymiah Jackson.

“Growing up playing together,” Borden, a freshman at Sumner High School, said of fellow Emerald Ridge freshman force Jackson, “It was fun to finally play her in high school.”

Wednesday night’s Class 4A South Puget Sound League showdown between division leaders, won by Sumner 51-44, was just the first such duel of what should be many more to come over the next four years between these two.

Individually, the 6-foot-0 Jackson won with a team-high 15 points to go with eight rebounds and five blocked shots. But the slightly smaller Borden (at 5-10) held her own as she drew the defensive assignment against her friend for most of the evening.

Borden also had eight rebounds and pitched in with six points for the Spartans, who remained unbeaten on the year both overall at 13-0 and in the 4A SPSL at 5-0. Emerald Ridge (7-4) lost for the first time in league and sits at 6-1.

“She’s a freshman, but at the end of the day I tell her all the time, I don’t care how old you are,” Sumner coach Katie Hyppa said. “To me, you’re one of the best players in the state. She’s tough, she’s crafty, she’s smart. It showed tonight, it’s showed all season long. She’s just going to keep getting better and going to progress.”

Borden, of course, wasn’t the only bright spot for Sumner. The Spartans’ senior guard tandem of Lainee Houillon and Adriana Perez (12 points) led the way.

Houillon scored a game-high 17 points but she easily could have had 25 or 30. On numerous occasions, Houillon got to the rim as she almost always does only to have short shots and layups rim off or out and not drop through the net.

“Anytime she breaks free and gets to the rim and the ball rolls in and out, I think we’re all frustrated,” Hyppa said.

But the scoring issues didn’t stop Houillon from contributing all over the court. Her big offensive rebound off a missed shot in the final two minutes allowed Sumner to hold onto what was just a three-point advantage at the time, 47-44, and run more clock.

That rebound was one of her eight in the game to go along with four steals. It also helped to stave off a fourth-quarter rally from the Jaguars, who trailed it 43-29 with 44 seconds left in the third quarter.

But Divina Williams made two free throws with 18 seconds left in the quarter, then Aaliyah Chappell tossed in a long 3-pointer at the buzzer to cut the margin to nine, 43-34. Jackson’s final basket of the game cut the Sumner lead to three, 47-44, with 2:24 to play.

“We knew it was going to be like that,” Houillon said. “It’s always a possession by possession game with them.”

In the long run, the close game might actually benefit both squads.

“Even talking before the game, we were saying how good it was to get to play a game like this,” Sumner coach Katie Hyppa said of her pregame conversation with Emerald Ridge coach Arvin Mosley.