Tumwater girls leave slow start behind, beat rival Black Hills behind senior leaders

When the 2018-19 basketball season began, the Tumwater High School girls were freshman-dominated.

Their two returning senior starters provided leadership, but not as many points as they had in years past. Not Friday night.

As the T-Birds hosted rival Black Hills in the first game of a sold-out doubleheader with the boys’ teams, experienced meshed perfectly with youth as Tumwater won, 55-52, to complete the first round of the Class 2A Evergreen Conference season undefeated in five games.

Senior forward Katie Cunningham led the way with 15 points, despite being in foul trouble much of the night, while senior guard Sophia Koelsch knocked down 12, including a 3-point basket from the top of the key with one minute, 39 seconds to go that put the T-Birds ahead to stay.

Meanwhile, freshman Aubrey Amendala scored 14, fueled by four 3-pointers, and freshman Natalie Sumrok contributed eight.

“I knew if I had to come out, whoever came in off the bench would do a good job in my spot,” Cunningham said.

The game started badly for Tumwater, which fell behind 10-2 and didn’t make a field goal until its 11th attempt, when Cunningham drove from the top of the key.

“We wanted to win so badly and we’re an inexperienced tream,” Tumwater coach Robin Johnson said. “We needed to settle down a little bit.”

With Cunningham scoring eight of the points, Tumwater went on a 14-4 run to get back into the game and tied it for the first time at 19-19 on a fast break layup by Sumrok.

Black Hills got the lead back for most of the third quarter after Kennedi Greenfield, who had 15 points for the Wolves, made a free throw just before halftime. Greenfield and Alexa Bovenkamp worked some high-low magic right after intermission, scoring two baskets apiece to help build the lead back to nine, 38-29.

But this was a game of runs.

Tumwater tallied the final 11 points of the third quarter, taking the lead, 40-38, at the buzzer when Amendala banked in a three from between the circles.

The lead changed hands six times in the fourth quarter as the Wolves got off to a fast start thanks to six of junior guard Mia Flores’ game-high 16 points.

But Koelsch hit her key shot, the last Tumwater would make from the field as the T-Birds connected on five of eight foul shots to hold off the Wolves.

TEAM STATISTICS

B – Shooting: 18 of 52 (34.6 percent). Free throws: 12 of 19 (63.2). Turnovers: 13.

T – Shooting :20 of 52 (38.5 percent). Free throws: 10 of 17 (58.8). Turnovers: 14.

INDIVIDUAL SCORING

B – Megan River 5, Mia Flores 16, Jordyn Bender 6, Alexa Bovenkamp 6, Saleen Lee 2, Kennedi Greenfield 15.

T – Sophia Koelsch 12, Katie Cunningham 15, Natalie Sumrok 8, Olivia Bailon 6, Aubrey Amendala 14.