STANWOOD — Going into Wednesday night’s showdown, it was clear that Lake Stevens and Stanwood were the top two teams in the Wesco 4A North. Which of the two was the best was anybody’s guess.
Now, it’s even more confusing.
The Spartans defeated Lake Stevens 60-56 at Stanwood High School, avenging a 61-52 loss to the Vikings on Dec. 9. Both teams now are 9-1 in league play and 15-1 overall, having only lost to each other.
So who’s better?
“These two teams are evenly matched,” Stanwood head coach Dennis Kloke said.
On Wednesday night it was the Spartans, who led most of the way, using a dominating low-post presence to pull ahead early — and hang on late.
Stanwood, which has three players who are at least six-feet tall, worked the ball inside and created opportunities close to the basket. When those opportunities missed, they grabbed the rebound and tried again.
“That was our offense,” said post Paisley Heckman, who had a game-high 16 points for the Spartans. “We had a really big height advantage over them. We knew that the key was getting their post in foul trouble.”
And that’s exactly what they did. With about three minutes to play in the game, the Vikings’ 5-foot, 7-inch Abby Molstre left the game with her fifth foul.
The Spartans outrebounded Lake Stevens 28-18, a vastly different outcome than the two teams’ previous meeting.
“The first time we played them they outrebounded us by 20,” Heckman said, adding that controlling the boards was Stanwood’s “main goal” Wednesday.
Stanwood freshman Tristan Murphy, who did not play in the prior game because of a broken finger, grabbed a team-high six rebounds. Heckman, Rachel Swartz and Tarah Murphy, Tristan’s older sister, grabbed five boards apiece.
Heckman said this was an important game for the Spartans, who knew that if they wanted to assert themselves as one of Wesco’s best teams, they’d have to take down the team that had been alone atop of the standings.
“We knew if we were going to be a state team, this is the team you would have to beat,” Heckmans said. “… It was a great game on both sides, and I’m definitely sure we’ll face them again.”
Stanwood’s goal, Kloke said, was to slow down the up-tempo pace of the Vikings’ offense. He said that because Lake Stevens has so many offensive weapons, he had to adjust the game plan and defense especially for this game.
That even included altering the starting lineup with usual starter Brenda Bingham coming off the bench. Kloke was thrilled that his players embraced his adjustments.
“I juggled things up a bit in my rotation,” the Stanwood coach said. “I really thanked the girls for accepting specific roles tonight.”
Brittney Pahukoa led the Vikings with 14 points. Brooke Pahukoa and Katie Goddard each scored 11 points.
After the game, Kloke went through the Vikings’ roster, pointing out how quick they were and how every player can impact a game.
“Abby (Molstre), you gotta keep her off the boards,” he said. “You gotta keep Brooke from shooting a 3 or driving to the hoop. You gotta keep Katie from making a 3. Then she showed me tonight she can drive to the hoop. … Brittney is their ball guard. Jade Borseth picked her up so she’d release the ball and then we were very conscious of where she was.”
Lake Stevens head coach Randall Edens said his Vikings had zero discussions about going undefeated. While his team lost, he said it was good for them to play a high-intensity game against a good opponent in a well-attended — and quite electric — venue.
“It was a great environment, no question about that,” Edens said. “I told the girls if you don’t enjoy something like tonight you shouldn’t be playing the game.”
For the first three quarters, the game featured mini-runs by each team. Stanwood would go on a 6-0 run, followed by four straight points from Lake Stevens. But in the fourth quarter, the Vikings were able to pick up the tempo, and that’s when they were able to gain some ground on the Spartans, pulling to within three points with 1:32 to go.
But Stanwood made free throws at the end of the game, and Tristan Murphy made a clutch basket to keep the Spartans ahead as the final buzzer sounded.
“It’s just two contrasting teams,” Kloke said. “One’s super-athletic, and then you add the (Pahukoa) twins and Katie. They’re a real good state tournament team. We’re not finesse. We’re grit.”
If both teams win their remaining games, Lake Stevens would have the advantage going into the district tournament, Kloke said. Before the season every team drew a number in the event of a tie in the standings after all the games had been played. Stanwood drew five. The Vikings got No. 3.
“We had nothing to lose,” Edens said. “Everything is still in our hands going forward.”
At Stanwood H.S.
Lake Stevens1317620—56
Stanwood1716918—60
Lake Stevens—Goddard 11, Pilon 5, Pahls 0, Pedersen 2, Molstre 6, Bri. Pahukoa 14, Bro. Pahukoa 11, Long 7. Stanwood–Kelleigh 7, Lucero 6, Bingham 2, Ta. Murphy 2, Borseth 2, Swartz 12, Heckman 16, Tr. Murphy 15. 3-point goals—Goddard 1, Pilon 1, Kelleigh 1, Heckman 1. Records—Lake Stevens 9-1 league, 15-1 overall. Stanwood 9-1, 15-1.
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