STANWOOD — Twenty-eight seconds into Friday’s night game against Stanwood, 6-foot Arlington forward Jayla Russ had two fouls and a place on the team bench. It was a forbidding start for the Eagles in a key Western Conference 3A showdown with the rival Spartans.
But with Russ sitting out the rest of the first half and stretches of the second half, it was guard Jessica Ludwig to the rescue.
Ludwig, a 5-9 senior, dropped in a team-best and season-high 20 points for Arlington while picking up the primary defensive responsibility on 6-foot Stanwood center Tristan Murphy. Ludwig’s inspired play was the catalyst for the Eagles as they pulled away in the second half for a 63-49 girls basketball victory, a game delayed 45 minutes by a fire alarm.
“She’s a senior, and that’s why coaches love seniors,” said Arlington coach Joe Marsh. “Jessica just worked hard all night long. She barely got a break. She rebounded, she played defense against Tristan who’s bigger than her, and she’s been doing it all year. She’s had a great year so far just because of her effort and her leadership.”
It was Ludwig who sparked a pivotal second-half burst by the Eagles that broke open a close game.
Arlington had a six-point halftime lead, but the Spartans closed within one point midway through the third quarter as Murphy scored six points in an 11-6 Stanwood run.
But over the next seven minutes Arlington went from a 34-33 lead to a 58-39 margin, with Ludwig scoring 11 points in that stretch. She had four points in two seconds after scoring with a basket and getting fouled, then missing the rebound but getting her own rebound and laying it in. She also capped the 24-6 scoring spree with a 3-pointer from left of the key.
“I have no fear when we have to take Jayla out of the game because Jessica steps up,” Marsh said. “She’s done it all year, and she’s done it for four years. She’s not afraid to play against bigger players. She’s really strong, she does what she needs to do, and she’s our anchor on the floor out there.”
Collectively, he added, the Eagles “played really hard and that’s what we do. We knew it was going to be a battle coming in here because it’s always a battle. But we persevered. We did a great job of getting a lead, and then stretching it out and keeping that lead. So I was really happy with that.”
At Arlington’s Thursday practice, Ludwig said, “we were really focused. We knew we needed to focus on the game, not worry about what they do and focus on what we do.”
The victory improved Arlington’s season record to 11-2, while the league mark is 3-0. Stanwood, meanwhile, slipped to 3-1 in Wesco games and 11-3 overall.
“This is a big win for us,” Marsh said. “We knew it was going to be a battle for the top of the league, and for us to come in here and get a win is nice. We’re really, really happy about that.
“It’s still early, but league wins are always good. And league wins against the team you think is going to be the competition for top of the league is even better.”
Murphy was high for Stanwood with 20 points, though the Arlington defense kept her without a field goal in the game’s final 11 minutes. Haley Strowbridge added 12 points for the Spartans.
At Stanwood H.S.
Arlington13152015—63
Stanwood1571512—49
Arlington—Gracie Castaneda 8, Serafina Balderas 6, Sarah Shortt 8, Sevi Bielser 8, Brittany DeNike 4, Olivia Larson 2, Emma Janousek 2, Peyton Brown 3, Jessica Ludwig 20, Jayla Russ 2. Stanwood—Kayla Frazier 4, Kyle Wright 2, Julia Heichel 3, Jillian Heichel 0, Haley Strowbridge 12, Kaitlin Larson 4, Ashley Bierer 2, Ashley Alter 2, Tristan Murphy 20. 3-point goals—Castaneda 2, Shortt 1, Bielser 2, Brown 1, Ludwig 1, Strowbridge 2, Murphy 1. Records—Stanwood 3-1 league, 11-3 overall. Arlington is 3-0, 11-2.
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