Flooding caused the cancellation of a half-dozen Week 2 games, including several key Northwest Conference contests, but both Lynden and Mount Baker managed to get in their three games and pick up two NWC victories and a big non-league win.
Lynden Christian and Lummi Nation each picked up a league triumph and a non-league win against a bigger school, and Ferndale also had an undefeated week, collecting a NWC victory before the flood waters sank the Golden Eagles’ other two scheduled games.
Stay tuned for more big games — and possibly more washed-out games — as we head into Week 3.
For a look back at Week 2 for our Whatcom boys teams, check out Whatcom Hoops Boys Recap.
Here are the girls highlights from Week 2:
GAME OF THE WEEK (Part 1)
Three minutes into the second half against talented Class 2A power Archbishop Murphy, Lynden Christian looked like it might be outmatched, falling behind by 12 at home on Saturday. But the Lyncs showed why they are still among the class of the Class 1A by rallying to take an exciting 50-47 victory. All-state guard Ella Fritts had 10 of her team-high 15 points in the fourth quarter and hit a turnaround jumper with 28 seconds to force the Wildcats into three 3-point attempts, all of which missed the mark, giving the Lyncs the non-league victory.
GAME OF THE WEEK (Part 2)
It wasn’t the closest and maybe not even the most exciting, but there wasn’t a more impressive win than Lynden’s 62-50 road victory over Class 4A state power Tahoma on Saturday. In what may be one of the toughest tests all year for the two-time defending 2A state champions, the Lions used a 10-0 run minutes into the game to take a lead they would never relinquish. The Bears cut the margin to four early in the fourth quarter with a 3-point barrage but the poised Lions never wilted, using a 12-2 run to push the lead back to double digits and icing the win on senior Degitu Bowler’s 3-pointer with 1:46 left.
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Mount Baker junior Rebeca Soares had 32 points on Monday, 19 on Wednesday, and 28 more on Friday. … Lynden junior Finley Parcher had 27 points and senior Payton Mills had 15 points on Tuesday, Mills had 25 points and Parcher 18 on Thursday, and Parcher finished the week with 32 points on Saturday. … Squalicum freshman Avery Kettman had 24 points in Monday’s big win. … Sophomore Tyra Dykstra had 23 points and senior Ella Fritts added 16 points for Lynden Christian on Tuesday, and Fritts added 15 points in Saturday’s big win. … Junior Jemma James had 19 points and eighth-grader Jordan Reeder had 18 in Lummi Nation’s big win Tuesday, and senior Ailina Rabang had 22 points and Reeder had another 18 for the Blackhawks on Saturday. … Junior Merritt Jensen had 19 points for Bellingham on Wednesday. … Ferndale senior Jillea Fox had 17 points on Tuesday. … Sehome sophomore Taylor Turrell had 15 points on Monday.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK
LYNDEN finally got on the court after 19 days of practice and it was worth the wait as the Lions opened with three impressive victories all on the road, beating Oak Harbor on Tuesday, 78-7; Squalicum on Thursday, 67-20; and Tahoma on Saturday, 62-50. On Tuesday, the Lions’ shockingly were behind, 3-2, after one minute of play and then their ferocious defense and unstoppable offense went on a even-more-shocking 59-0 run. Parcher led the scoring onslaught with 27 points to break into the exclusive 1,000 career points club and also had 8 rebounds, 5 steals, and three 3-pointers. Mills added 15 points, sophomore Emily Dykstra had 10 points, sophomore Izzie Stephan had 8 rebounds, senior Rian Stephan had 5 assists, and junior Lexi Hermanutz had 6 points as 10 different Lions scored. On Thursday, the Lions jumped out to a 20-point halftime lead and then ended any doubt by holding the Storm to five points in the second half. Mills had 25 points, three 3-pointers, and 11 rebounds; Parcher had 18 points, 14 coming in the first half before the game got out of hand, and added 6 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 steals; Hermanutz had 9 points and 5 steals; and Rian Stephan had 6 points and 4 rebounds. In Saturday’s non-league battle against a 3-0 Tahoma team that had beaten its opponents by an average of 39 points, Lynden led by a dozen in the first half and held off the Bears by outscoring them, 15-7, in the fourth quarter to earn the hard-fought win. Parcher was unstoppable, making 12 of 15 shots including a pair of 3-pointers to finish with 32 points. She also had 6 rebounds, 3 assists, and 4 steals. Hermanutz had 14 points with three 3-pointers and 7 rebounds, and Rian Stephan and Mills had 6 points and 6 rebounds each with Mills also dishing out 3 assists. For the story and photos from Thursday’s game, click on Lynden Girls.
MOUNT BAKER had a great week, topping visiting Sedro-Woolley on Monday, 58-51; visiting Friday Harbor on Wednesday, 53-23; and Bellingham on the road on Friday, 51-25. On Monday, the Mounties rallied from a cold start and a 13-point first-quarter deficit to score 39 second-half points and hold off the Cubs. Soares and junior Violet Fox led the comeback with Soares collecting 23 of her 32 points and Fox having 10 of her 13 after intermission. Soares also had 21 rebounds and 10 blocks to complete the triple-double; Fox had 12 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals; and senior Reace Brown added 6 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists for Baker. On Wednesday, the Mounties jumped out to a 20-2 lead and coasted to the non-league victory. Soares had 19 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 steals; sophomore Kayln Abitia made two 3-pointers to spark the first-quarter blitz and finished with 8 points, sophomore Aurora George came off the bench to score 7 points and grab 6 rebounds, and Fox had 6 points and 9 rebounds. On Friday, the Mounties handed the Bayhawks their first defeat by scoring the first 10 points of the game and holding Bellingham to fewer than eight points in each quarter. Soares had another big game with 28 points, 12 rebounds, 4 steals, and even three 3-pointers. Fox had 7 points, 6 assists, and 4 steals, and Abitia and George nabbed 4 steals each. For the story and photos from Wednesday’s game, click on Mount Baker Girls.
LYNDEN CHRISTIAN defeated Mount Vernon on Tuesday, 70-46; had Thursday’s game at Sedro-Woolley postponed until Dec. 17 because of flooding; and knocked off Archbishop Murphy on Saturday, 50-47. On Tuesday, the Lyncs held Mount Vernon to only five first-quarter points and pulled away for the NWC victory. Dykstra had 23 points thanks to five 3-pointers, Fritts finished with 16 points and 5 rebounds, junior Grace Russell had 9 points, senior Estela Hernandez had 8 points, freshman Jessica DeJong had 6 points, senior Sara Van Loo had 7 rebounds, and junior Ellie Pierce had 6 assists. On Saturday, the Lyncs needed to come back from a 12-point second-half deficit against the Class 2A contender. Fritts had 15 points and was among the guard combo that held Wildcats’ all-stater Brooke Blanchly to five points. DeJong finished with 11 points, Dykstra had 8 points and a pair of 3-pointers, junior Jocelyn Eshuis had 8 rebounds, and Hernandez and Pierce had 3 assists each. For the story and photos from Saturday’s game, click on Lynden Christian Girls.
FERNDALE bested Anacortes on Tuesday, 64-55, and then had both the Stanwood non-league game on Friday and the Nooksack Valley contest on Saturday postponed because of flooding. The Golden Eagles used a 26-point third-quarter blitz to pull away from a halftime tie and shoot down the Seahawks. Fox led a balanced scoring attack with 17 points, sophomore Ari Gilday had 13 points, junior Brooklyn Larrabee had 12 points, and senior Abbey White and junior Kayla Lee had 9 points each with all of Lee’s and eight of Larrabee’s coming in the critical third period.
LUMMI NATION clobbered Cedar Park Christian (Lynnwood) in Tuesday’s Northwest 1B League contest, 89-19; had Friday’s game with Providence Classical postponed because of flooding; and then traveled to Bellevue to beat Interlake in a non-league game Saturday, 68-56. On Tuesday, the Lady Blackhawks scored the first 13 points of the game and led 33-4 after one quarter on the way to the 70-point victory in their home opener. All 10 Blackhawks got in on the scoring with James’s 19 leading the way, 14 of them and three of her four 3-pointers coming in the first period. She also had 5 steals and 4 assists. Reeder added 18 points and three 3-pointers; Rabang had 13 points, 10 rebounds, 9 assists, and 9 steals, and a pair of 3s; senior Brianna Metteba had 11 points, 5 assists, and 5 steals; freshman Maeli Metteba and sophomore Laraya Dennis had 7 points each; and senior Makaya Morris and sophomore Celestine James had 6 points each. On Saturday, the Blackhawks took it to the Class 3A Saints early, scoring 42 points in the first half and coasting to victory. Rabang had 22 points, 15 of them in the first half, 9 assists, 6 rebounds, 3 steals, and two 3-pointers; Reeder had 18 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds, 3 steals, and four 3-pointers; and Jemma James and Celestine James had 10 points each with Jemma also dishing out 3 assists and Celestine collecting 4 rebounds.
SEHOME bested Meridian on Monday, 46-30; lost to Stanwood on Tuesday, 49-31; and beat Blaine on Saturday, 56-25. On Monday, the Mariners broke away from a two-point halftime lead by holding the Trojans to four third-quarter points and stretching the margin to as much as 20 in the fourth period. Turrell led the second-half charge with 13 of her game-high 15 points coming after intermission, senior Gwen Gates had 12 points on four 3-pointers, junior Sadie Gustafson added 9 points and 4 steals, and senior Aspen Barge had 6 rebounds and 3 blocks. On Tuesday, the Mainers offense went cold, only managing 15 points in the first half against the Class 3A state contender. Turrell had 10 points, senior Aspen Barge had 9 points and 4 steals, junior Kate Schroeder had 9 points, and senior Lily Jude added 5 rebounds. On Saturday, the Mariners defense was almost impregnable, holding the Borderites to eight points in the first half and allowing only two players to score more than two points. Sehome nearly got all the points it would need in a 22-point first quarter and all 10 Mariners who got in the game would end up scoring. Turrell led the balanced attack with 10 points, Gates and Schroeder had 9 points each, and Jude finished with 6 points. Schroeder and Gustafson had 4 assists each, Gustafson had five of Sehome’s 24 steals, and juniors Elyse Panagos and Stella Hogan had 7 rebounds each.
BELLINGHAM beat Blaine on the road on Wednesday, 32-24, but suffered its first defeat on Friday, losing to visiting Mount Baker, 51-25. On Wednesday, the Bayhawks ran their season-opening winning streak to three games by limiting the Borderites to just 14 points through three quarters. Jensen led the Bellingham offense with 19 points and sank 5 of 6 free throws to help hold off the Borderites. Sophomore Elise Holland had 7 rebounds and 4 steals, and senior Mary Lockhart contributed 10 rebounds. On Friday, the Bayhawks fell into a 10-point hole to start the game and couldn’t come up with enough offense to make up the difference. Jensen managed 11 points against the Mounties’ sturdy defense, sinking 9 of 12 from the line, and pulling down 7 rebounds. Lockhart had 8 points and 6 rebounds, and Holland had 8 rebounds and 5 steals.
SQUALICUM blasted Burlington-Edison on Monday, 50-31, but lost to Lynden on Thursday, 67-20. On Monday, the Storm ran off 27 straight points in the first half and coasted to victory in their NWC opener. Avery Kettman had 16 of her game-high 24 points in the first half, made all four of her free throws as the Storm hit 12 of 15 from the stripe for the game, and grabbed 7 rebounds. Junior Lexi Robbins had 13 points, hit a couple of 3s, sank 4 of 5 free throws, and had 4 assists and 4 steals; junior Colee Harper had 8 points and a team-high 9 steals; and junior Addison Kettman had a team-high 9 rebounds and 3 assists. On Thursday, the Storm couldn’t get anything going offensively against the defending 2A state champs and suffered their first league loss. Addison Kettman, junior Tiana Thompson, and freshman Audri Kiesau had 5 points each, and Robbins had a team-high 4 rebounds. For the story and photos from Thursday’s game, click on Squalicum Girls.
NOOKSACK VALLEY had Wednesday’s game at Lakewood and Saturday’s game at Ferndale postponed until a later date because of flooding.
MERIDIAN lost to Sehome on Monday, 46-30, and had Thursday’s game with Burlington-Edison postponed until a later date because of flooding. On Monday, the Trojans played the Mariners even in the first half but a four-point third quarter put them in a double-digit hole they couldn’t dig out of. Junior Kaitlyn Storgaard led the Trojans with 9 points and 8 rebounds, senior Taya Benson added 8 points and 4 rebounds, and junior Eden Bernardy had 6 points, 6 rebounds, 6 steals, 4 assists, and Meridian’s only 3-pointer.
BLAINE lost to Bellingham on Wednesday, 32-24, and to Sehome on Saturday, 56-25. On Wednesday, the Borderites’ defense stifled the Bayhawks and threatened to hand Bellingham its first loss, but Blaine couldn’t come up with quite enough offense for the upset. Junior Kate Koreski had 11 points, 4 rebounds, and 4 steals, and senior Aaliyah Bowman had 7 points and 7 rebounds, but no other Borderites had more than two points. Senior Bea Dickson added a game-high 12 rebounds. On Saturday, the Borderites struggled early, falling behind 21-2 and never recovering against the Mariners. Bowman had 12 points and Koreski had 8 points and 4 assists to lead Blaine.
NOTE: A big thank you to the coaches and Tyler Anderson of WhatcomPreps.com for providing statistics.
WEEK 3
TOP GAMES
The NWC gets serious with Whatcom teams squaring off in five key games. Meridian is at Squalicum and Sehome is at Mount Baker on Tuesday, Lynden Christian is at Sehome on Thursday, and Meridian is at Blaine and Lynden at Ferndale on Friday. But the week’s toughest schedule goes to Lummi Nation, which has games on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday.
SCHEDULE
Monday, Dec. 15: Lakewood at Lynden, Bellingham at Oak Harbor, Friday Harbor at Lummi Nation
Tuesday, Dec. 16: Meridian at Squalicum, Sehome at Mount Baker, Mount Vernon at Nooksack Valley, Shoreline Christian at Lummi Nation
Wednesday, Dec. 17: Ferndale at Oak Harbor
Thursday, Dec. 18: Lakewood at Squalicum, Lynden Christian at Sehome, Anacortes at Bellingham, Nooksack Valley at Sedro-Woolley, Lummi Nation at Lopez Island
Friday, Dec. 19: Meridian at Blaine, Lynden at Ferndale, Mount Baker at Burlington-Edison, Lummi Nation at La Conner
Saturday, Dec. 20: Cascade (Everett) at Blaine, Lynden at Stanwood
NORTHWEST CONFERENCE
| League | Overall | |||
| W | L | W | L | |
| Lynden | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Mount Baker | 2 | 0 | 3 | 2 |
| Sehome | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 |
| Ferndale | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Lakewood | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Lynden Christian | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Bellingham | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| Squalicum | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
| Nooksack Valley | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Anacortes | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Burlington-Edison | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Meridian | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Mount Vernon | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| Sedro-Woolley | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| Blaine | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
| Oak Harbor | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
NORTHWEST 1B LEAGUE
| League | Overall | |||
| W | L | W | L | |
| Lummi Nation | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| Tulalip Heritage | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Grace Academy | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| Lopez Island | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| Providence Classical Christian | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Shoreline Christian | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| Cedar Park Christian (Lynnwood) | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 |
