Chinn’s 18 points, Lakeside’s defense power Lions over No. 3 White River in 3A regionals
Swarming Lakeside of Seattle’s Willa Chinn comes at an expensive price: Allow the senior guard to pull up with a tried-and-true midrange jumper, or watch as the Metro standout facilitates open looks around her.
From the opening tip to the final buzzer in Saturday’s 3A regional round, Chinn was the do-it-all playmaker for a Lions squad hungry to upset No. 3 White River. She dropped 10 first-quarter points in an early barrage, sparked a suffocating defense with swats and steals, and fed open Lakeside shooters to nail the coffin shut.
“It’s like having another coach out there,” Lakeside head coach Mia Augustavo-Fisher told The News Tribune. “I trust her.
“Her IQ is amazing. She’s a basketball kid. She loves it. She’s a gym rat. The better she is, the better our team is, and when she’s firing on all cylinders like today, that’s what happens.”
Chinn’s early rampage pushed Lakeside’s lead to double digits within minutes, and the Lions cruised over the Hornets, 59-38, in dominant fashion at Auburn High School.
When championship hopefuls gather for the 3A Round of 12 at the Tacoma Dome on Wednesday, Lakeside gets the day off. Saturday’s win puts them straight through to Thursday’s 3A quarterfinals, and just three wins away from a state title.
“We’re so incredibly happy and grateful and proud,” Augustavo-Fisher said. “Our players worked really hard this week.
“We watched film. We walked through. We tried to know everything we could to get ready. But ultimately, the players are the ones that made plays. I couldn’t be prouder of them.”
Lakeside played cleaner, smoother basketball, disrupting White River’s offense at all levels and forcing inaccurate passes in transition. Turnovers plagued the Hornets, a rare off-night for a perennially-great program that entered the state bracket at 22-3 and hasn’t missed the tournament’s “Sweet 16” since 2008.
“You can’t stop good players,” Augustavo-Fisher said. “You just hope you can make them miss a lot more than they’re used to. But shoutout to White River. They have an amazing group of players, so we took it very seriously.”
Chinn dropped 10 of her game-high 18 points in the first quarter. Lakeside guard Lili Brown co-led all scorers with 18, with four triples (three in the second half) that squashed any hope of a White River comeback.
“I think people are starting to scout us and they see that we have different talents across the board,” Augustavo-Fisher said. “They have to pick their poison.”
Lakeside guard Helena Christofilis and forward Kaliya Woodard added 10 points each to give the Lions four double-digit scorers.
“We’ve been working a lot on our offensive flow, and we just came out super ready to go,” Chinn said. “We were locked in.”
White River chipped away at the early deficit but fell flat in the third quarter, held without a field goal in the period until Hornets guard Dakota Sprouse hit a three-pointer with 1:55 remaining.
The Hornets fall to Wednesday’s 3A Round of 12 with No. 19 Garfield, the four-time defending state champion, for a 9 a.m. tip. The winner meets No. 4 Stanwood in Thursday’s 3A quarterfinals at the Tacoma Dome.
Lakeside moves directly to Thursday’s 3A state quarterfinals and faces the winner of No. 5 Seattle Prep and No. 12 Eastside Catholic, a pair of Metro rivals. The Lions are 3-1 vs. Eastside Catholic and 1-2 vs. Seattle Prep this season.
“The experience of state is my favorite every year,” Chinn said. “I’m just really excited to get back to it.”
BOX SCORE
L: 22-8-15-14—59
WR: 9-10-7-12—38
Scoring: (L) Brown 18, Chinn 18, Christofilis 10, Woodard 10; (WR) Schmitz 10, Kingston 9, Sprouse 6, Banks 5
REGIONAL RESULTS
4A GIRLS
No. 8 Sumner 67, No. 1 Davis 62
No. 2 Lake Washington 65, No. 7 Camas 49
No. 3 Chiawana 67, No. 6 Auburn 51
No. 4 Woodinville 70, No. 5 Union 66
No. 9 Mead 56, No. 16 Eastmont 47
No. 11 Redmond 61, No. 14 Kennedy Catholic 53
No. 13 Glacier Peak 52, No. 12 Emerald Ridge 43
3A GIRLS
No. 1 Central Valley 78, No. 8 Meadowdale 64
No. 2 North Thurston 59, No. 7 Kennewick 52
No. 6 Lakeside (Seattle) 59, No. 3 White River 38
No. 4 Stanwood 54, No. 5 Seattle Prep 42
No. 17 Bellevue 61, No. 9 Ridgeline 55
No. 19 Garfield 50, No. 11 Mountain View 44
No. 12 Eastside Catholic 60, No. 13 Bellarmine Prep 42
2A GIRLS
No. 2 Ellensburg 78, No. 7 Columbia River 28
No. 3 Deer Park 52, No. 6 Prosser 38
No. 5 Archbishop Murphy 53, No. 4 W.F. West 41
No. 9 Woodland 59, No. 16 Sultan 28
No. 10 Port Angeles 46, No. 15 Cedarcrest 38
No. 11 Eatonville 55, No. 14 Ridgefield 51
No. 12 North Mason 44, No. 13 Renton 30
1A GIRLS
No. 1 Lynden Christian 57, No. 8 Naches Valley 54
No. 2 Bellevue Christian 42, No. 7 Cashmere 39
No. 6 Seton Catholic 69, No. 3 Zillah 65
No. 4 King’s 59, No. 5 Annie Wright 37
No. 9 Nooksack Valley 64, No. 16 Hoquiam 42
No. 10 Montesano 47, No. 15 The Bush School 19
No. 11 Wapato 56, No. 14 King’s Way Christian 45
No. 13 Lakeside 41, No. 12 Cedar Park Christian 40
2B GIRLS
No. 8 Northwest Christian 53, No. 1 Rainier 42
No. 2 Adna 70, No. 7 Cle Elum-Roslyn 54
No. 3 Brewster 51, No. 6 Mount Vernon Christian 28
No. 4 Reardan 53, No. 5 Napavine 36
No. 9 Mabton 66, No. 16 La Conner 37
No. 10 Liberty 73, No. 15 Okanogan 29
No. 11 Columbia 58, No. 14 Mossyrock 35
No. 12 Colfax 62, No. 13 Tri-Cities Prep 29
1B GIRLS
No. 1 Neah Bay 65, No. 8 Pateros 31
No. 2 Waterville-Mansfield 59, No. 7 Pe Ell 18
No. 3 Garfield-Palouse 47, No. 6 Inchelium 43
No. 5 Wellpinit 55, No. 4 Yakama Tribal 49
No. 9 Lummi Nation 61, No. 16 Muckleshoot Tribal 37
No. 10 Oakesdale 61, No. 15 Taholah 29
No. 11 Sunnyside Christian 58, No. 14 Almira Coulee Hartline 45
No. 13 Wilbur-Creston-Keller 57, No. 12 Crosspoint Christian 56
