Snohomish comeback falls three points short
Published 11:43 pm Friday, December 28, 2007
AUBURN — The Snohomish Panthers girls basketball team has struggled to find consistency this season, despite its perfect 4-0 record in Wesco North play.
Friday night was no exception.
Sheldon High School, from Eugene, Ore., used a 25-4 run spanning nearly 10 minutes of the second and third quarters, then survived a valiant comeback effort by Snohomish to hang on and defeat the Panthers 47-44 in the third annual Riverside Invitational at Auburn Riverside High School.
“We just have those four to six minute stretches where we just don’t do a thing,” Snohomish coach Ken Roberts said.
After a seesaw first quarter, Karley Lampman’s 3-pointer gave Snohomish a 17-13 lead heading into the second period.
The Panthers held Sheldon scoreless until the 4:15 mark in the second quarter, extending their lead to 22-13. But a Tami Brown basket sparked a 12-2 run that sent the Irish into halftime with a 25-24 lead.
Sheldon started the second half as dominating as they closed the first. Taylor Ward’s steal and layup with 4:10 remaining in the third quarter made it 34-24.
But Snohomish battled back. Katie Benson scored five straight points before Lampman added a jumper to climb back within four at 38-34.
Lampman added another 3-pointer and a 15-foot jumper, and Benson followed by hitting both ends of a one-and-one to give Snohomish the lead back at 41-40 with 4:09 to play in the fourth period.
After Sheldon took back the lead, Snohomish hit a 3-pointer to tie the score at 44. But Sheldon’s Katie Stiegleman hit a 3-pointer to make it 47-44. Snohomish had several opportunities to tie, but couldn’t knock down the crucial 3-pointer when it was needed.
“Throughout the game there were a lot of missed shots from the perimeter,” Roberts added.
Despite nearly blowing the big lead it worked so hard to get, Sheldon coach Luke Roth was happy with his team’s efforts.
“We gutted it out down the stretch,” he said. “We’re pretty competitive and we were trying to find a groove and gel together and I think we finally did.”
Lampman led all scorers with 16 points, including nine in the second half as she and Benson nearly brought the Panthers back for the win.
“Our girls always play hard. They won’t give up,” Roberts said.
Benson had 13 points for Snohomish, and Theresa Brown led Sheldon with 15.
Snohomish plays at 3:45 p.m. today against either Buena (Calif.) or host Auburn Riverside. Sheldon plays the winner of the Buena-Auburn Riverside contest in the “Navy” division championship at 7:30 p.m.
At Auburn Riverside H.S.
Sheldon1312157—47
Snohomish1771010—44
Sheldon—Ward 9, C. King 2, Girod, Gray, Stiegleman 9, Pangilinan, Doe 4, Hauser 2, Ta. Brown 6, Anderson, Th. Brown 15. Snohomish—Guthrie 3, Schmitt, Lampman 16, Burns 4, Desmarais, Miller, Berg, Benson 13, Heard 4, Fairbanks, Scott 4. 3 point goals—Lampman 2, Guthrie 1, Stiegleman 1. Records—Sheldon not reported. Snohomish 5-2 overall.
