MARYSVILLE — In the first quarter Lake Stevens made it look easy, jumping out to a nine-point lead through the first eight minutes.
Over the next two quarters, Jackson gave the Vikings all they could handle.
Trailing by one point heading into the decisive final period, Lake Stevens used a stifling defensive effort — Jackson managed just two free throws and no field goals in the fourth quarter — to claim a 54-45 victory in one semifinal of the Class 4A District 1 girls basketball tournament at Marysville-Pilchuck High School.
The win clinches a berth for the Vikings in next Saturday’s district championship game against Monroe and a spot in the upcoming state regional.
Lake Stevens, which improved to 19-3, will be making its fifth trip to state in six seasons under head coach Randall Edens. Some of those former Vikings were on hand Saturday, “and they understand how huge these moments are,” Edens said. “It’s a really special.”
Brooke Pahukoa, a sophomore guard, gave Lake Stevens a big lift in the first quarter, tossing in 13 points on her way to a game-high total of 21. Pahukoa closed the period with a free throw and a three-point play in the final 16 seconds as the Vikings seized a 21-12 lead.
The margin was 31-23 at halftime, but in the third quarter the T-wolves began to chip away at the deficit. Freshman guard Kelli Kingma and junior center Kristin Stoffel each scored six points in the quarter, and it was Kingma’s 3-pointer from near the top of the key in the late seconds that gave Jackson a 43-42 edge heading into the fourth quarter.
But the final period belonged to the Vikings. Feeding off their defense, they went ahead to stay midway through the quarter and stretched the lead to nine points at the final horn.
“We had the lead (at halftime), but then they gave us a taste of our own medicine (in the third quarter),” said Vikings senior forward Meghan Warbis. “We didn’t convert and they were converting. But we held our poise. … We’re really good at composure.”
“It was a struggle in the third quarter,” Edens said. “We weren’t executing very well. But we have kids that have been there before, and they knew they needed to bear down defensively and get tough rebounds (in the fourth quarter).
“And then we got enough baskets at the end to pull it out,” he said.
At Marysville-Pilchuck H.S.
Jackson 12 11 20 2 — 45
Lake Stevens 21 10 11 12 — 54
Jackson—Hicks 2, Gjertsen 2, Coacher 0, Kingma 15, M. McArthur 6, Johnson 0, Hagans 0, Anderson 4, Stoffel 16. Lake Stevens—Goddard 3, Puha 6, Warbis 8, Wilson 0, Burke 5, Molstre 7, Brittney Pahukoa 4, Brooke Pahukoa 21. 3-point goals—Kingma 3. Records—Jackson is 13-9. Lake Stevens is 19-3.
Monroe 62, Marysville-Pilchuck 52
Monroe took control of the game with a big third quarter and went on to defeat Marysville-Pilchuck for a spot in next Saturday’s District 1 championship game against Lake Stevens.
The Bearcats trailed by one at halftime and were having trouble solving Marysville-Pilchuck’s stingy zone defense. But in the third quarter Monroe got untracked as senior guard Suzanna Ohlsen tossed in 10 points and senior guard Bianca O’Hara added eight, lifting the Bearcats to a 45-34 margin through three quarters.
The lead reached a high of 16 points, 51-35, early in the fourth quarter before the Tomahawks began to rally. They cut the deficit to eight points in the final minute, but could come no closer.
“We’re getting better at the right time,” said Monroe coach Rodney Walker. “Now we’ve got two more weeks to get better, and we’ll see where we’re at when we go into the state regional.
“We’re excited,” he added. “Our chemistry is getting better and we’re starting to play better. … We’re looking forward to getting back to work and seeing if we can try to give Lake Stevens some problems next week.”
At Marysville-Pilchuck H.S.
Marysville-Pilchuck 4 17 13 18 — 52
Monroe 9 11 25 17 — 62
Marysville-Pilchuck—Lentz 5, Pilon 4, Klep 0, Martinis 8, Petersen 1, Watson 6, Enberg 11, Heckendorf 17. Monroe—Ohlsen 18, O’Hara 19, Brazel 10, Alexander 7, Wangner 0, Shore 1, Murphy 0, Wilkins 4, Snell 3. 3-point goals—Lentz 1, Martinis 1, O’Hara 4, Brazel 1, Snell 1. Records—Marysville-Pilchuck is 14-8. Monroe is 14-8.
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