LIVERMORE, CALIF. — The Lynnwood girls basketball team got just what it was looking for in its final game at the West Coast Jamboree.
Salesian College Prep pushed the Royals for a whole game, not letting up against Lynnwood in the Platinum Division consolation championship.
In the end, Lynnwood held on to defeat the Pride 85-71 to finish 3-0 in the prestigious tournament at Las Positas Junior College Wednesday afternoon.
The win effectively gives the Royals fifth place in the top division at the West Coast Jamboree — the largest girls basketball tournament in the country featuring 128 teams in 16 divisions playing games at nine venues throughout the San Francisco Bay Area.
“We faced a situation where a team pushed us the whole game, which we haven’t experienced a lot,” said Lynnwood head coach Everett Edwards, whose Royals have scored 67 points per game while only giving up about 33 points a contest. “It was a good situation for our girls to have to deal with that. They challenged us.”
Mikayla Pivec scored 33 points, grabbed 24 rebounds and added seven assists to lead Lynnwood (9-0 overall). The post was 17-for-20 from the free throw line.
Pivec and fellow senior Jordyn Edwards, who added 16 points for the Royals, were named to the all-tournament team.
“Jordyn and Mik are our leaders. They led us today,” Everett Edwards said. “We just had a great overall team experience. It’s a (phenomenal) situation for Mik to have 30-something points and 20-something rebounds. And Jordyn was just clutch for us.”
Kelsey Rogers and Kaprice Boston added 15 points apiece for the Royals in the victory. Edwards also singled out junior guard Reilly Walsh as a difference-maker for Lynnwood.
“Reilly Walsh has been an impact player for us, regarding her flexibility to basically play any position on the offensive and defensive end. I don’t think she came out of the game,” Edwards said. “She does not get a lot of the limelight and she is just a key part of our team and our success.”
University of Southern California commit Minyon Moore led Salesian (8-3) — a college preparatory school from Richmond, California — with 35 points. Moore and Salesian were the latest challenge for Lynnwood, which had to go against Oaks Christian star Katie Campbell Tuesday night in the tournament.
“It’s just what we’re looking for. We got everything we would want out of this tournament,” Edwards said. “We went against some very good teams, but also some very good players. Yesterday it was (Campbell) — a shooter who could shoot from all over the floor. Today, it was a different dynamic. (Moore) was a tough driver to the hoop. We had a hard time staying in front of her. Hopefully it’ll help us in preparation for our league and after league play.”
Lynnwood went 3-0 at the tournament but played in the consolation championship because of a scheduling issue with the Royals’ travel plans from San Francisco conflicting with the time of the division’s championship game. Tournament officials decided to place Lynnwood in the consolation bracket, where the Royals took care of business.
Edwards said his team wasn’t worried about the adjustment and continued to look forward to playing strong teams from around the state of California.
“Overall, it was a great tournament for us,” Edwards said. “Nobody was injured, we had a great team bonding experience and to ultimately go 3-0 is a great thing for us.
“It’s a situation where we would’ve loved to play (Platinum Division favorite and perennial power) Long Beach Poly. It would have been great to play them. But we came down for the team bonding and to play three good basketball teams.”
At Las Positas Junior College
Lynnwood26201821—85
Salesian17141327—71
Lynnwood–Abi Yemane 1, Reilly Walsh 2, Rachel Walsh 2, Jordyn Edwards 16, Mikayla Pivec 33, Kelsey Rogers 15, Kaprice Boston 15, Taylor Fahey 2, Abby Douglas 0, Kia Crawford 0. Salesian–Taimane Lesa-Hardee 10, Minyon Moore 35, Taisia Fleming 3, Nia Chinn 0, Sydni Stewart 3, Jordan Hobson 4, Angel Jackson 1, Anjel Galbraith 1, JulieAnne Martin 9, Makayla Edwards 2, Rayana Ross 1. Records–Lynnwood 9-0 overall. Salesian 8-3.
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