The Lummi Nation basketball teams finally got to play at home this season and wrapped up a busy week by sweeping their tribal rivals Tulalip Heritage on Friday, Dec. 13.
The Blackhawk boys jumped out early and won going away, 77-34, to remain unbeaten in Northwest 1B League play. The Lady Blackhawks also moved to the top of the standings by holding on to win a nail-biter, 45-43.
Senior captain Caleb Revey goes up for two of his game-high 17 points.
Boys
Lummi Nation 77, Tulalip Heritage 34
Playing their fourth game in as many nights, the Blackhawks (3-1 overall, 2-0 in league) had every reason to come out sluggish.
But playing before their home crowd for the first time, they came out firing with Caleb Revey, William Hetland and Duncan Toby hitting 3-pointers and all five starters scoring in the first three minutes as the Blackhawks raced to 27-9 first-quarter lead and never looked back.
“We wanted to jump on top and get a quick lead,” said Revey, the Blackhawks’ senior leader who led the team with 17 points. “It was our fourth game in four days, but we thought, ‘It’ll be fun.’”
Fun for the Blackhawks for sure. Hetland added 12 points on four 3-pointers, Tyran Lane had 11 points inside and 8 rebounds, and Toby and Richard Wilson tossed in 8 points each.
With coach Jerome Toby playing his bench much of the game, 10 of 11 Blackhawks scored.
And with everybody getting their points, the coach made sure to mention the “extra efforts,” including Hetland’s defensive performance, Wilson’s high energy off the bench, and Revey’s leadership.
“It’s been a long week,” said coach Toby, “so we wanted to have a good start. And they were ready.”
Girls
Lummi Nation 45, Tulalip Heritage 43
With new coach Mike Wade taking over just a week ago and with only one senior on the squad, the Lady Blackhawks (2-1 overall, 2-0 in league) haven’t had much time to figure out their roles and learn a new system. No matter.
With freshman Raven Solomon scoring a career-high 16 points — all in the first half — and junior transfer Shaylynn Jojola scoring 15 points, Lummi Nation led most of the game and was up 45-38 with two minutes to go.
Tulalip Heritage made it interesting at the end, closing to within two and making a steal with time running out. But a shot that went in was well after the final buzzer as the Blackhawks held on.
“Any time you get a league win, you’ve got to be happy,” said Wade, who replaced Kevin Day, both of whom remained as assistants on the boys team. “Our girls are young, but they didn’t quit. We’ll be OK.”
For Jojola, the victory was especially sweet since she was returning to her “home” team after spending the past two years at other schools.
“It meant a lot to me,” she said. “This is my first year (at Lummi) as a high schooler. This is my family.”
For all the Northwest 1B League scores and standings, visit www.nwbathletics.com.
