Eagles end coaster ride at state
March 9, 2009
By Ryan Piersol
Erin Nicol, senior guard (left), crashes to the floor for the last time as an Issaquah Eagle, as she and Mercedes Whitmore of Auburn-Riverside collide, in the last minute of Saturday’s state 3A trophy game at the Tacoma Dome. By Greg Farrar
Issaquah leaves undefeated Pasco in its wake en route to 7th place
The Issaquah girls basketball team didn’t finish No. 1, but it did beat a top-ranked team and set the tone for future 4A marches with a seventh-place finish in the state tournament last week at the Tacoma Dome.
The KingCo Conference champion Eagles finished the season with a 19-8 record. The state trip was Issaquah’s sixth since 2000, but first since moving up a class to 4A.
After beating Jackson 58-55 in the opener, the Eagles’ first loss of the tournament was a 54-38 decision to Federal Way in the quarterfinals. Facing traps both in the full-court and half-court, Issaquah turned the ball over 20 times and shot just 22 percent from the field in the defeat.“We didn’t handle it very well. We just had a lot of mental mistakes and didn’t handle that pressure very well,” Issaquah head coach Kathy Gibson said. “Why? I don’t know. The girls knew what they were supposed to do. They just didn’t do it.
“We’re a better team than that. Federal Way is a good team, but unfortunately, they didn’t beat us doing our best.”
Issaquah trailed just 8-6 at the end of the first period, but a small run early in the second opened up a 16-8 Federal Way lead and it was 25-16 at halftime. That lead grew to as much as 37-21 by the 3:26 mark of the third period, after Federal Way hit a 3-pointer and got back-to-back layups off turnovers.
Erin Nicol led Issaquah with 15 points, 11 of which came from the free-throw line. None of the Eagles hit more than three field goals.
“These games are tough to lose, because everyone wants to win. It’s kind of who can bounce back the fastest, really, and who wants to bounce back,” Gibson said. “It’s tough to bounce back and is a tough mental challenge for the girls.”
Issaquah handled it just fine, however, as it came back the next day to topple top-ranked Pasco 52-50 behind a huge game from senior Alexa Smith.
Smith scored 21 points and pulled down nine rebounds, while also scoring the eventual game-winning bucket with 1:11 to play. Smith was 6-of-9 from the field and 9-of-12 from the line.
Pasco, which had lost for the first time the previous day, led 16-10 at the end of the first. But Issaquah rallied with an 18-point third period to take control at 41-38 going into the fourth.
Sophomore Maddey Pflaumer added 10 points and six rebounds for the Eagles, who then moved onto a matchup with Auburn Riverside for fourth place in the tournament.
Issaquah jumped out to a 12-4 lead at the end of the first period and controlled the game until late. It appeared the Eagles were going to run away with the win at one point in the third period, as they had a 40-25 lead. They still led 43-33 going into the fourth quarter, when Auburn Riverside turned on the offense and erupted for 24 points to score a come-from-behind 57-48 victory, putting Issaquah into seventh place for the tournament.
Nicol had a big game for the Eagles, knocking down 7-of-17 shots to finish with 15 points. Smith had 11 points and seven rebounds, while Pflaumer added 10 points.
Issaquah opened the tournament with a 58-55 win against Jackson. Nicol led all scorers in that one with 18 points, while Smith chipped in 12 and Pflaumer 10.
The Eagles trailed, 49-43, going into the fourth quarter, before a stingy defensive effort got them back on top. Two free throws by Pflaumer gave them a 50-49 lead with 5:25 remaining. Jackson had a chance to tie the game in the final seconds, but missed on a 3-point attempt.
After shooting 58 percent from the field in the first half, Jackson was held to just 31 percent in the second half.
Smith honored
For individual honors, Smith was selected to the all-tournament second team. She averaged 12.5 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.8 assists. Nicol, who wasn’t selected to the all-tournament team averaged 13.5 points and 3.2 rebounds. However, she was selected as KingCo’s Most Valuable Player this season.
Comments
Got something to say?
Before you comment, please note:
- These comments are moderated.
- Comments should be relevant to the topic at hand and contribute to its discussion.
- Personal attacks and/or excessive profanity will not be tolerated and such comments will not be approved.
- This is not your personal chat room or forum, so please stay on topic.
