Whatcom Hoops: Girls Week 6 Recap (Jan. 6-11)

Snow is flying and an ice storm is predicted for this week, which means it’s time to start thinking of the hottest girls basketball teams in Whatcom County. And the best place to find the best teams is at the WIAA’s RPI rankings.  There are different places to find rankings, but the one that counts for playoffs is the state’s Rating Percentage Index, which uses a formula that includes a team’s record, their opponents’ records, and their opponents’ records.

You can check out every team’s RPI ranking at wiaa.com (click on RPI, rankings) but here’s where our Whatcom County teams stand at the end of Week 6 (and note: rankings change daily after games are played):

Class 3A: Ferndale is 12th and Squalicum is 46th.

Class 2A: Lynden is first, Sehome 16th, Bellingham 27th, Blaine 45th

Class 1A: Lynden Christian is third, Nooksack Valley 11th, Meridian 16th, Mount Baker 22nd

Class 1B: Lummi Nation is 21st

With four more weeks in the regular season and lots of playoff action still to come, a lot can change. So keep rooting for your favorite teams … weather permitting, of course.

GAME OF THE WEEK: In a game that was important in the current Northwest Conference standings and one that had historic ramifications, Lynden Christian earned a hard-fought victory over Ferndale on Wednesday to keep pace with Lynden atop the NWC. It also was the 1,000 victory in Lynden Christian’s tradition-rich history.

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK: Hallie Kamphouse had 19 points, including five 3-pointers, in Nooksack Valley’s win over Sedro-Woolley, and teammate Maya Galley had 19 points, including four 3-pointers, in the Pioneers’ win over Anacortes. … Sehome’s Kaylee Wilson had 16 points and went 6-for-6 from the line in the Mariners’ victory over Anacortes. … Kylie Hershey led Lynden with 18 points in the Lions’ victory over Sehome. … Sophomore

Krystin Kamrath led Blaine with 14 points against Lakewood and 18 points against Meridian. … Squalicum’s Grace Schroeder had 15 points in the Storm’s loss to Bellingham.

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK: Lynden beat Bellingham, 54-29, on Tuesday and held Sehome to nine first-half points in beating the Mariners, 58-24, on Thursday. Against the Raiders, Anna VanderYacht had 15 points and Hershey added 13, while Faith Baar had 12 rebounds and Madison Canales added 8 rebounds and 6 points. Nine different Lions scored against Sehome, including Canales with 8 points.

Nooksack Valley clobbered Sedro-Woolley on Tuesday, 78-46, and Anacortes on Thursday, 66-51. Against the Cubs, McKenna Wichers and Kora Larsen had 12 points each and Tehya Moore added 11. Against the Seahawks, Larsen added 14 points, Kamphouse had 11 and Moore was 8-for-8 from the line as the Pioneers hit 19 of 20 free throws. 

Lynden Christian pulled away from Ferndale, 62-43, on Wednesday, and crushed Sedro-Woolley on Friday, 80-27. Against the Golden Eagles, Emily Mellema led a balanced attack with 13 points, Libby Stump added 12 and Lexi Hernandez had 11. On Friday, Riley Dykstra led the Lyncs with 14, Mellema had 13, Kenadi Fay added 11 and Alli VanKooten tossed in 10.

Mount Baker notched two big NWC wins, defeating Squalicum, 38-28, on Tuesday and Lakewood, 49-27, on Thursday. The Mounties had five 3-pointers in the first quarter, including two by Abby Yost, in the victory over the Storm. Against Lakewood, freshman Madison Barter had all of her team-high 12 points, including two 3-pointers, in the Mounties’ 23-point first quarter. Petra Allred added 11 points against the Cougars.

Lummi Nation extended its winning streak to three games and stayed in first place with a 41-32 victory over Lopez on Monday and a 66-34 victory over Cedar Park Christian (Mountlake Terrace) on Friday. Against Lopez, the Lady Blackhawks rallied in the final quarter as Raven and Alayna Solomon combined for 14 points and the two finished the game with 16 points and 12 points, respectively. Against CPC, junior Shaylynn Jojola came off the bench to score a team-high 14 points, including a pair of 3-pointers, and Raven Solomon and Rian Green added 11 points each.

Ferndale battled Lynden Christian even for three quarters before falling, 62-43, on Wednesday. Jamie Johnson led the Golden Eagles with 13 points, including a pair of 3-pointers. Then on Friday, Ferndale lost a close one at Burlington-Edison, 47-40.

Sehome topped Anacortes, 51-39, on Tuesday as Ava Lunny scored 12 points and Aspen Garrison had 10 points. The Mariners’ four-game NWC win streak came to an end on Friday against Lynden, 58-24. Lunny’s 7 points led the way for Sehome, while Garrison was held to 6 points.

Squalicum lost to Mount Baker, 38-28, on Tuesday and lost to city rival Bellingham, 57-41, on Thursday. The Storm then clobbered Friday Harbor in a non-league contest on Saturday, 49-18. Leah Austin had 10 points and 10 rebounds against the Mounties, and 12 points against Friday Harbor. Schroeder added 14 points against the Wolverines.

Blaine showed its defensive prowess with a 42-10 victory over Lakewood on Tuesday, but lost to Meridian on Friday, 46-36. Hailey Pike had 17 points in the two games and 7 rebounds against Lakewood, and Taylyn DePauw had 10 points against Lakewood and 7 rebounds against Meridian.

Bellingham lost to Lynden, 54-29, on Tuesday and then fell to Squalicum on Thursday, 57-41.

Meridian fell to Burlington-Edison on Wednesday, 68-34, and came back to beat Blaine, 46-36, on Friday.  

Week 6 Standings

NORTHWEST CONFERENCE

 League   Overall
W L W L
Lynden 5 0 12 0
Lynden Christian 5 0 10 1
Burlington-Edison 4 1 10 2
Nooksack Valley 4 1 10 2
Sehome 4 1 9 3
Ferndale 3 2 8 4
Meridian 3 2 6 5
Mount Baker 2 3 7 5
Squalicum 2 3 3 7
Bellingham 1 4 7 5
Blaine 1 4 4 8
Anacortes 1 4 3 9
Lakewood 0 5 2 9
Sedro-Woolley 0 5 3 8

NORTHWEST 1B CONFERENCE

 League   Overall
W L W L
Grace Academy 6 1 8 2
Lummi Nation 6 1 7 5
Tulalip Heritage 5 1 7 4
Lopez 2 3 2 5
Cedar Park Christian (MLT) 2 5 2 7
Shoreline Christian 1 5 3 5
Orcas Christian 0 6 0 6

WEEK 7

TOP GAMES: Two of the Northwest Conference’s biggest surprise teams will square off on Monday when Sehome travels to Nooksack Valley as the two try to keep pace with the NWC leaders. Then on Friday, Lynden hosts Burlington-Edison in a battle between two of the top Class 2A teams in the state.

SCHEDULE (Being updated with weather changes)

Monday, Jan. 13: Anacortes at Squalicum

Tuesday, Jan. 14: Blaine at Ferndale, Burlington at Mount Baker, Sehome at Nooksack Valley (postponed from Monday, Jan. 13)

Wednesday, Jan. 15: Bellingham at Lynden Christian (postponed from Tuesday, Jan. 14)

Thursday, Jan. 16: Mount Baker at Bellingham, Ferndale at Anacortes, Blaine at Sehome, Meridian at Sedro-Woolley, Shoreline Christian at Lummi Nation

Friday, Jan. 17: Nooksack Valley at Lakewood, Burlington at Lynden, Lynden Christian at Squalicum

Jim Carberry of Whatcom Hoops

Author
Jim Carberry is a former Bellingham Herald sports editor and author of several books on Whatcom County prep basketball. Follow him on Twitter @whatcomhoops and visit the Whatcom Hoops Facebook page.

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