Prep roundup: River Ridge girls still alive in 2A bi-district tournament with win over Fife
As long as a playoff win is the outcome, River Ridge girls basketball coach Steve Schultz will take it.
“I’ll take that win again,” he said. “If we scored 12 points and won, I’d be happy.”
The Hawks didn’t score many more than that Tuesday night in their 28-20 win over Class 2A South Puget Sound League rival Fife at Curtis High School, but it was enough to avoid elimination in the West Central/SeaKing bi-district tournament.
MaKenna Schultz scored eight of her game-high 14 points in the fourth. She was the only scorer in double digits. Lauryn Gray added six, while Caitlin Yenne and Madaline Retzlaff had four apiece.
“At halftime, I knew we needed to do something, we needed to step it up,” MaKenna Schultz said.
Both teams struggled offensively from the opening tip. River Ridge shot 10 of 47 (21.3 percent) from the floor.
“I think we need to relax a little bit more,” Steve Schultz said. “We got great shots on offense, we just need to knock them down.”
But even a low-percentage shooting night was enough to edge Fife. The Trojans finished 8 of 45 (17.8 percent) and committed 16 turnovers — including a string of eight in the first quarter.
MaKenna Schultz’s deep 3-pointer with 1 minute, 35 seconds remaining in the first turned out to be the game winner.
Fife had multiple scoring droughts that lasted more than four minutes.
“Defense is our game,” Steve Schultz said. “And that’s where the focus will be. That’s what we have to do to win games.”
The Hawks (14-8) have to win one more game to secure a 2A regional playoff berth.
They’ll play Renton (16-8) — which joins River Ridge’s division of the 2A SPSL next school year — in an elimination, winner-to-state game at 7:45 p.m. Thursday at Curtis.
4A WEST CENTRAL DISTRICT 3
Olympia 42, Kent-Meridian 26: Jenna Randich led all scorers with 19 points as the Bears rebounded from a quarterfinal loss against fourth-ranked Todd Beamer this past Saturday to defeat the Royals in an elimination game.
Savannah Lackey was the leading scorer for Kent-Meridan with 11 points.
Olympia (14-9) plays Curtis (17-7) in an elimination, winner-to-state game at 7:45 p.m. Thursday at Mount Tahoma High School.
Rogers 63, Kentridge 50: The Rams outscored the Chargers 18-11 in the fourth quarter to win a loser-out game.
Jessi Westering scored a game-high 21 points with Tristen Coltom chipping in with 16 points for the Rams.
Taylor Jenkins and JaQuaya Miller scored 15 points apiece for the Chargers.
Rogers will next face South Kitsap at 6 p.m. Thursday at Mount Tahoma in a loser-out game.
South Kitsap 48, Puyallup 41: The Wolves overcame a 26-16 halftime deficit to rally back and defeat the Vikings.
South Kitsap was led by Libby Borgonia, who scored 13 points.
The Wolves ended the third quarter outscoring Puyallup, 20-8, in the third quarter and 12-7 in the fourth to get the win.
3A WEST CENTRAL 3/SOUTHWEST 4 BI-DISTRICT
Sumner 55, Bonney Lake 41: After trailing 11-10 in the first quarter the Spartans fired back, outscoring the Panthers in the remaining three quarters to win an elimination game.
The Spartans move on to face Auburn Mountainview 7:45 p.m., Thursday at Washington in a loser-out game.
Hazen 37, Enumclaw 30: The Highlanders outscored the Hornets in three out of the four quarters to get a win in a loser-out game at Franklin Pierce High School.
Hazen moves on to face Columbia River 6 p.m. Thursday at Washington High.
BOYS
2A SOUTHWEST 4
Mark Morris 74, Black Hills 56: The setup is starting to look eerily similar for the Wolves.
They put up 56 points in a loss to the Monarchs in the same semifinal last season.
And lost that one, too.
This time, Mark Morris’ Will Burghardt was the thorn in Black Hills’ side. He put up a game-high 24 points, and went 9 of 9 from the free throw line.
TJ Mickelson scored a team-high 15 for Black Hills, while Joe Crumley had 14.
The Wolves (10-12) play Centralia (10-12) in an elimination game 6 p.m. Thursday at W.F. West High School.
Centralia 62, Hudson’s Bay 54: The Tigers held on in an elimination game despite a barrage of fourth-quarter 3-pointers by the Eagles, who hit 13 total.
The Tigers (10-12) get Black Hills (10-12) at 6 p.m. Thursday
Tumwater 54, Woodland 37: A win over the Beavers earned the T-Birds a trip back to the district championship game — and a guaranteed Class 2A state regional berth.
Weston Vandenhazel scored a game-high 16 points for Tumwater, while Spencer Dowers added 13.
Cade Otton recorded a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds.
Tumwater (15-6) plays Mark Morris (19-3) at 8 p.m. Friday at Saint Martin’s University for the district title.
This story was originally published February 16, 2016 at 10:08 PM with the headline "Prep roundup: River Ridge girls still alive in 2A bi-district tournament with win over Fife."