TACOMA
The members of the Lynnwood High School girls basketball team wanted to do it for the seniors.
After making their first trip to the Class 3A state tournament since 1994 and losing their opener Wednesday, the Royals just wanted to extend the season for Laycee Hill and Kari Hella by winning their consolation game with Yelm.
Hill had a chance to force overtime with just seconds remaining in the game, lofting a 3-point attempt from the corner that hit the back iron. The miss allowed Yelm to escape with the 54-51 victory in a loser-out game March 11 in the Tacoma Dome.
With 24 seconds to play, Hill raced down the floor, gathered a pass at the top of the key and drained a 3-pointer to make it a one-point game, but Yelm inbounded, calmly broke the Royals’ press and found Anushka Maldonado under the hoop for a layin — the game’s final basket.
“It was a game of momentum swings,” third-year Lynnwood coach Everett Edwards said. “They got the last swing.”
The Royals (14-14) led by as many as seven points in the first half, but it was the same story as in Wednesday’s loss to Prairie. They couldn’t put together a full 32 minutes. It has been the theme of the year for the youthful Royals, who rely mostly on underclassmen.
“We’ve been a team that will play good for one half and not so great the second half,” Edwards said.
Senior Katelyn Smith, who ruled the paint with 15 points and seven boards, led Yelm. Maldonado chipped in 13 points and 13 rebounds. The Tornados had a 50-31 rebounding advantage thanks to the two 6-foot posts.
“It was tough (handling Smith and Maldonado) especially when Mokun Fajemisin got in foul trouble,” Edwards said. “They kind of took advantage a little bit.”
Fajemisin, Lynnwood’s 5-foot-10 sophomore forward, sparkled in her 23 minutes, scoring a team-high 13 points, grabbing five rebounds and collecting three steals.
“Holy moly, she’s tough inside,” Yelm coach Russ Riches said. “We knew that we had to take her away.”
The only way the Tornados could do that was to get Fajemisin in foul trouble. Austin Schorno drew Fajemisin’s fourth with three minutes 32 seconds left in the third quarter.
Sophomore starters Fajemisin, Casey Evans and Meghan Cross represent a bright future for the Royals, and freshman Arsenia Ivanov made a splash in just her second game of the season. After recovering from a knee injury she suffered more than a year ago, Ivanov made her debut against Prairie on Wednesday. On Thursday, she played 21 minutes, including most of the fourth quarter. Ivanov scored nine points on 3-for-8 shooting from behind the arc.
“She is a very strong-willed player,” Edwards said. “She’s a great shooter from the outside. She gave us a bit of a spark, something we needed off the bench.”
After drinking in the atmosphere in Tacoma, the Royals would like nothing more than to return next season.
“It was a really big deal for us (to make state),” Fajemisin said. “This is a sign of us turning things around. Hopefully we can continue next year.”
Jon Saperstein writes for The Herald.
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