LYNNWOOD
After a sensational first half, Eryn Jones cooled off for awhile.
But fortunately for the Meadowdale Mavericks, she warmed up again just in time.
Jones scored 21 points, including the last five of the game, to launch the Meadowdale girls basketball team to an intense 55-53 victory over the resilient Jackson Timberwolves on Dec. 13.
Jones, who poured in 16 in the first half, tied the score with a 3-point basket and won it with a driving floater over a much taller defender with seven seconds to go.
“She’s awesome. I’m speechless right now,” said Meadowdale coach Dan Taylor, whose team won the Western Conference South Division game at Meadowdale High, improving its record to 2-0 in league and 4-0 overall. The Mavericks are tied with Kamiak for first place in the South.
Jones, a junior guard, drove toward the right baseline and lofted the game-winner over Brittany Eskridge, Jackson’s 6-foot-2 post, an Oregon State University recruit.
Jones refused to be intimidated despite the presence of Eskridge, who blocked five shots. Said Jones, “I was thinking, ‘We are not losing again at home. No way!’”
Jones referred to last season when Jackson’s victory at Meadowdale on Jan. 27 (its first ever against the Mavericks) ended the Mavericks’ streak of consecutive league victories at 95. It was also Meadowdale’s first home loss in more than two years.
“Our whole team wanted it,” Jones said. “We wanted to prove that we can still (win at home).”
Hanna Fjortoft (15 points, three 3-pointers), Cassie Kosmides (eight points) and Marelle Moehrle (seven points) helped Meadowdale, ranked No. 4 in Class 3A by WashingtonPreps.com, overcome a big rally by Jackson (0-1, 2-1). The Timberwolves, ranked No. 5 in 4A, fell behind by 12 early in the third quarter on Fjortoft’s second 3-pointer but tightened up on defense and pulled within five (44-39) heading into the fourth.
The final period featured five lead changes and three ties. Kristi Kingma’s traditional 3-point play on a tough, driving layin and a subsequent foul shot gave Jackson a 53-50 lead with 2:31 to go. But Jones drained a 3-pointer, her first points of the second half, to tie it with 1:09 remaining.
After Jones’ go-ahead bucket and a Jackson time out with four seconds to go, Kingma caught the inbounds pass and launched a long 3-point try from the right side, just past midcourt. It was on line but came up short and grazed the net.
Kingma finished with 21 points (nine in the fourth), including three 3-pointers. Michelle Addington scored 11 points, and Ashly Bruns and Eskridge (11 rebounds) added eight apiece for Jackson.
Jones led all players with 16 first-half points, including 11 in the second quarter. She scored on an impressive mix of drives and jumpers, and also contributed several assists. Meadowdale led 38-29 at intermission.
“Defensively in the first half we were making a lot of mistakes and they were capitalizing, hitting their open shots and really putting us into a hole,” Jackson coach Jeannie Thompson said.
“Things were clicking,” Meadowdale’s Taylor said. “We were getting open shots and getting rebounds.”
Jackson recovered in the second half, outscoring Meadowdale 10-0 during one stretch to take a 45-44 lead.
“In the second half our intensity level dropped … and we didn’t get (rebounds) like we should have,” Taylor said.
But after a thrilling back-and-forth struggle, Jones supplied the home team’s winning moment.
“She’s a great player,” Jackson’s Thompson said. “We knew … after the first couple minutes it was gonna be her night (and) she’d really challenge us to come out and stop her.”
“The ball was in her hands that last couple seconds,” Thompson added. “I wasn’t happy about it and I had a feeling that last shot was going down.”
To Jackson’s chagrin, Thompson’s intuition was right on.
Mike Cane writes for The Herald in Everett.
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