MILL CREEK
It was an unforgettable night of firsts for the Jackson High School girls basketball team.
In an early season game that had the feel of a state-tournament thriller, Jackson senior Ashly Bruns made the first game-winning shot of her career to launch the Timberwolves to a 69-67 victory over the previously unbeaten Meadowdale Mavericks on Dec. 12.
Jackson’s triumph was its first ever on its home court against Meadowdale, one of the state’s elite programs.
Bruns drove, spun and scored a layin from the right side with 1.2 seconds to go in the Western Conference South Division contest at the Jackson High gym. The guard finished with 12 points, but her clutch basket accounted for her only points of the fourth quarter.
Bruns’ shot capped a 22-11 final-quarter eruption for Jackson, which trailed at one point 56-47. The Timberwolves prevailed even though their leading scorer, Kristi Kingma (24 points), fouled out with a few minutes to go.
Jackson barely withstood a 27-point effort from Meadowdale’s Eryn Jones, whose 3-pointer tied it at 67-67 with 24 seconds remaining. Bruns won it on Jackson’s next possession.
“We’ve been dying to beat these guys. They’re like our rivals,” Bruns said. “We want to beat them every year. It’s great to come out here and finally win on our home court and just have a good game.”
It’s just the second time Jackson, which opened in 1994, has defeated Meadowdale. The Timberwolves won 57-54 in the Mavericks’ gym during the 2005-2006 season.
Jackson got major help from senior Ashley Todd, who scored five of her nine points in the final 4:24, and sophomore Erin Feeney (16 points). Feeney made back-to-back 3-pointers in the fourth quarter, turning a six-point deficit into a 60-60 tie.
Kingma, who scored 15 points in the first half, fouled out with 2:01 while guarding Jones on a baseline drive. She watched the rest of the game from the bench.
“The thing that stood out the most for us tonight was the composure of our entire team,” Jackson coach Jeannie Thompson said. “We’ve had to rely on (Kingma) a lot in the past and she had a lot of pressure on her tonight (but) the girls stepped up and really handled that end-of-the-game moment.”
That decisive moment thrilled Jackson fans. Bruns said she was simply doing her job: “Anyone on our team could have hit that (winning layin), but I was the one (Jackson coaches) set it up for.”
Meadowdale coach Dan Taylor had a brace on his right ankle after severely spraining his ankle Tuesday night while scrimmaging against his players. The pain of losing a tight game against Jackson hurt worse though, he said.
Jones, Anna Molitor (13 points), Hanna Fjortoft (11) and Alli Streit (10) were the leading scorers for Meadowdale, which played a zone defense on the decisive play and knew exactly what to expect, Taylor said. The Mavericks “just made mental errors. They were supposed to close the gap and not let (Bruns) drive, but they let her drive.”
Meadowdale hadn’t lost a regular-season game since Jan. 27, 2006 ¿ the night it lost versus Jackson. Since then, the Mavericks had won 29 consecutive regular-season games.
Even with Kingma, a University of Washington recruit, on the bench at the end, Jackson busted its opponent’s lengthy streak and made program history.
“Kristi does a lot of great things out there and she’s a great player,” Bruns said, “but it’s really a team game and everyone can step up. I just happened to be the person to step up.”
Mike Cane writes for The Herald in Everett.
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