Lynden Christian and Nooksack Valley made quick work of their first-round foes in the Class 1A District 1 girls basketball tournament, but Mount Baker and Meridian couldn’t make it a Whatcom County sweep Monday night, Feb. 10.
The Lyncs smothered South Whidbey, 81-14, and Nooksack Valley clobbered Coupeville, 61-15, putting the top two Northwest Conference seeds into Tuesday’s district semifinals.
In Monday’s other opening-round games, third-seed Mount Baker fell to Cedar Park Christian (Bothell), 54-42, and fourth-seed Meridian took North Sound champion King’s down to the final minutes before losing, 42-36.
In Tuesday’s semifinals, Cedar Park Christian (Bothell) will take on Lynden Christian at LC, and Nooksack Valley will face King’s in Seattle. Both games are at 7 p.m. with the winners advancing into Friday’s championship game.
Mount Baker and Meridian move into the consolation bracket with the Mounties hosting South Whidbey and the Trojans traveling to Coupeville for loser-out contests on Tuesday at 7 p.m.
The top five finishers from the district tournament will advance to the Bi-District 1/2 tournament, which starts on Feb. 17.
Lyncs Have No Trouble Flying Past South Whidbey
About the only thing that slowed down Lynden Christian (20-1) was the running clock after the Lyncs took a 40-point lead in the first half against the out-manned Falcons (9-12).
The NWC champions and second-ranked Class 1A team only allowed three players to score and never let South Whidbey score more than five points in a quarter.
Meanwhile, the Lyncs’ balanced offense and strong bench overwhelmed the North Sound’s fourth seed. Junior guard Paige TeVelde led LC with 14 points, including four 3-pointers, as 11 of the 12 Lyncs scored.
Also in double figures were junior guard Emily Mellema with 12 points and sophomore guard Libby Stump with 10 as Lynden Christian put up its second-highest point total of the season and its largest margin of victory.
Lynden Christian 81, South Whidbey 14
South Whidbey 5 3 5 1—14
Lynden Christian 20 29 22 10—81
South Whidbey: Mary Moss, Simone White, Madi Knauer, Nikki Murnane, Arianna Briggs 4, Liz Haines, Kayla Knauer, Ella Wood, Hadley Eager, Emma Hodson, Sami Daly 4, Isabelle Wood 6.
Lynden Christian: Libby Stump 10, Demi Dykstra 4, Paige TeVelde 14, Kiley Roetcisoender 7, Riley Dykstra 7, Liv Mellema 3, Emily Mellema 12, Lexi Kaptein, Lexi Hernandez 6, Kenadi Fay 6, Alli VanKooten 3, Charley Dykstra 9.
Pioneers Uses Defense To Shut Down Coupeville
Nooksack Valley (16-5) came out strong, holding the Wolves (12-6) to only three first-quarter points in taking a 16-point lead after one period.
And the Pioneers never let up, shutting out Coupeville in the third quarter and holding the Wolves to their second-lowest point total of the season.
Junior guard Maya Galley led the balanced Nooksack Valley attack with 14 points, including three 3-pointers. Senior guard Kora Larsen and junior forward Jenna Compton had 11 points each, and sophomore forward McKenna Wichers added 10.
Nooksack Valley 61, Coupeville 15
Coupeville 3 6 0 6—15
Nooksack Valley 19 15 12 15—61
Coupeville: Scout Smith, Chelsea Prescott, Audrianna Shaw, Anya Leavell 4, Hannah Davidson 8, Tia Wurzrainer 2, Maddie Georges, Avalon Renninger 1, Carolyn Ihamon, Isabelle Wells, Kylie VanVelkinburgh, Mollie Bailey.
Nooksack Valley: Kora Larsen 11, Tehya Moore 7, Maya Galley 14, McKenna Wichers 10, Hallie Kamphouse, Ellie Van Berkum 1, Renae Hoekema 5, Jenna Compton 11, Taylor Lentz 2.
Mounties’ Cold Second Half Leads To Loss
Mount Baker (11-10) started strong and finished strong, but cold-shooting second and third quarters allowed North Sound runner-up Cedar Park Christian (Bothell) to rally for the victory.
Senior forward Abby Yost led the Mounties with 10 points, and sophomore guard Trinity Anderson added 7 points.
After scoring 18 points in the first period, Mount Baker only managed seven in the next two quarters, including a single point in the third quarter when the Eagles (16-5) took control with 18 points.
The Mounties also couldn’t stop senior forward Irena Korolenko, who finished with a game-high 21 points for the Eagles.
Cedar Park Christian (Bothell) 54, Mount Baker 42
Mount Baker 18 6 1 17—42
Cedar Park Christian (Bothell) 7 10 18 19—54
Mount Baker: Trinity Anderson 7, Madison Barter 4, Petra Allred 6, Alyssa Chadwick, Hayley Jimmie 5, Taite Reardon 4, Abby Yost 10, Ripley Reardon 6.
Cedar Park Christian (Bothell): T. Michel 3, Abby Perrigoue 3, M. Perrigoue 5, O. Decker 12, Irena Korolenko 21, M. Brown 5, A. Brown 5.
Trojans take No.5 King’s Down To The Wire
After a cold start, Meridian (10-12) rallied behind sophomore guard Finlley Claeys and a physical defense to put a scare in fifth-ranked King’s (16-5) before losing in Seattle.
Claeys had a game-high 15 points, including 10 in the second half when the Trojans cut a 10-point first-quarter deficit down to two with less then two minutes remaining. But Claire Gallagher hit a 3-pointer and both her free throws as King’s held off Meridian.
Sophomore post Skyleigh James had all four of Meridian’s first-quarter points and finished with 9 points. Junior guard Madeline Bowler added 8 points, but only four Trojans managed to score.
King’s was led by Brenna Hart’s 12 points.
King’s 42, Meridian 36
Meridian 4 10 9 13—36
King’s 14 8 2 18—42
Meridian: Madeline Bowler 8, Kayla Aalpoel, Maris Baklund, Finnley Claeys 15, Amanda Schleimer, Kandance Blankers, Avery Neal, Ellie DeWaard 4, Skyleigh James 9.
King’s: Brenna Hart 12, Gwyn Siers, Mia Flor 4, Ashley Gray 9, Emma Storkson, Daylee Peterson 4, Ava Francisco, Claire Gallagher 8, Samantha Skaggs 4.
CLASS 1A DISTRICT 1
Saturday, Feb. 8
Meridian 65, Sultan 34 (loser out)
Monday, Feb. 10
Nooksack Valley 61, Coupeville 15
King’s 42, Meridian 36
Cedar Park Christian (Bothell) 54, Mount Baker 42
Lynden Christian 81, South Whidbey 41
Tuesday, Feb. 11
Meridian at Coupeville, 7 p.m. (loser out)
South Whidbey at Mount Baker, 7 p.m. (loser out)
Cedar Park Christian (Bothell) at Lynden Christian, 7 p.m.
Nooksack Valley at King’s, 7 p.m.
Thursday, Feb. 13
Consolation game at higher seed, 7 p.m. (loser out)
Consolation game at higher seed, 7 p.m. (loser out)
Friday, Feb. 14
Championship game at Mount Vernon, 5:30 p.m. (winner first, loser second)
Saturday, Feb. 15
Consolation game at Mount Vernon, 2 p.m. (winner fifth, loser out)
Consolation final at Mount Vernon, 5:30 p.m. (winner third, loser fourth)
(Top five advance to Bi-District)
