ARLINGTON — The Ferndale Golden Eagles are going dancing for the first time in 20 years.
Meanwhile the Meadowdale Mavericks, household names when it comes to the state basketball tournament, are going to have to wait until Saturday before trying to earn their 13th straight berth.
Ferndale upset Meadowdale 51-45 in the Class 3A District 1 girls championship game Thursday at Arlington High School, earning the Golden Eagles its first state berth since 1988.
Meadowdale (20-4 overall) will face Shorecrest, 53-37 winners over Arlington earlier Thursday, at 8 p.m. Saturday at Arlington High School for a chance to earn a state tournament berth.
Ferndale used its post players in controlling the tempo of Thursday’s game. The Golden Eagles out-rebounded the Mavericks 19-6 in the second half.
And led by 6-foot junior post Ashley Honeycutt’s game-high 20 points, Ferndale used second chance opportunities in getting to the free-throw line. Honeycutt scored eight points on free throws and Ferndale made 16-of-31 free throw attempts.
“They were good,” Meadowdale head coach Dan Taylor said. “They got good looks, they finished strong and when they missed they followed it up. They got those second chance shots.”
The Mavericks took their final lead on an Eryn Jones jumper with 3:15 remaining in the game that gave Meadowdale a 41-39 advantage.
After a Carleigh Newman free throw cut Meadowdale’s lead to 41-40, Honeycutt scored on an offensive rebound, was fouled, and converted the free throw, giving the Golden Eagles a 42-41 lead.
Ferndale sealed the victory in the final 90 seconds when senior guard Alyssa Locker converted two steals into baskets, increasing the Golden Eagles lead to 49-43.
“We couldn’t get the rebounds that we wanted and we didn’t capitalize on their turnovers. I think we maybe had one or two fastbreaks, which is something we thrive on. We’re an uptempo team and they slowed it down,” Taylor said.
Guard Hanna Fjortoft, a member of the All-Wesco second team, scored just two second-half points after getting in foul trouble in the third quarter and injuring her ankle in the fourth.
Fjortoft was on crutches following the game and Taylor said the guard had a sprained left ankle.
“It does affect us because she brings it — a different level and intensity. She’s a tough defender and when she went down it was a tie ballgame,” Taylor said about the loss of Fjortoft.
At Arlington H.S.
Ferndale8161114—51
Meadowdale818109—45
Ferndale — Marks, Cicchitti 2, A. Locker 5, Newman 10, E. Locker, Flores, Honeycutt 20, H. Locker 4, Lindsay 6. Meadowdale — Coronacion, J. Fjortoft 4, Jones 19, H. Fjortoft 11, Molitor 6, Beyer 3, Streit, Lillquist 2, Zickefoose. 3-pointers — Lindsay 1, H. Fjortoft 1, Beyer 1, Jones 1. Records — Ferndale 15-8 overall. Meadowdale 20-4.
At Arlington H.S.
Meadowdale 0 0 0 0 — 0
Ferndale 0 0 0 0 — 0
Meadowdale — Beyer, Carlow, Coronacion, Fjortoft, Fjortoft, Jones, Landa, Lillquist, Matkins, Molitor, Nugent, O’Neill, O’Neill, Streit, Zickefoose. Ferndale — xxx. 3-point goals — xxx. Records— Meadowdale 20-3 overall. Ferndale 14-8.
Shorecrest 53, Arlington 37: Jocelyn Riordan scored 13 of Shorecrest’s 16 third-quarter points as the Scots pulled away from Alington. Riordan, who shot 7-for-14 from two-point range and 4-for-7 from beyond the 3-point arc, finished with a game-high 29 points. Shorecrest plays Ferndale or Meadowdale in a winner-to-state, loser-out game at 8 p.m. Saturday at the Arlington gym.
At Arlington H.S.
Arlington 9 5 9 14 — 37
Shorecrest 12 9 16 16 — 53
Arlington — Daggett, Evans 3, Jensen 2, Kesselring 12, Murrin, Prause 2, Scheppele 11, Van Loo 2, White 5, Wilson. Shorecrest — Axelson, Glesener, Hagood 9, McCorkell 3, Riordan 29, Schade, Shrote, Towles 2, Tseng 10. 3-point goals — McCorkell 1, Hagood 2, Riordan 4, Scheppele 2, White 1, Evans 1. Records — Shorecrest 16-8 overall. Arlington 10-15.
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