Area Sports

By MICHAEL DASHIELL
Sequim Gazette

Last week’s West Central District tourney, one that ended for Sequim in a loss to Foster Saturday, wasn’t the picture-perfect ending for the Wolves.

But coach Stephanie Lewis is counting the season as a positive one.

The Wolves won 11 games this season — more than the previous three combined — and qualified for their first district tournament since 2008.

“They (the Wolves) weren’t ready to be done,” Lewis said.

 

“Next year, we want to make it to state,” she said. “We’re not going to shoot for anything else.”

 

The Wolves finished two wins shy of that goal this year, getting eliminated 74-54 by Foster’s Bulldogs on Feb. 19.

 

Bulldog Shantell Jackson scored 27 points and Destiny Beasley added 14 points as Foster quickly erased Sequim’s two-point first quarter lead.

 

Foster outscored Sequim 22-7 in the second quarter.

 

Haleigh Harrison led Sequim with 18 points while Lea Hopson and Rylleigh Zbaraschuk added 10 points each.

 

“We came out of a slump (at districts); the girls definitely stepped up their game big time,” Lewis said.

 

It was the final game for Hopson, a senor who was named to the all-Olympic League first team and led the Wolves with 12.2 points per game, 3.5 steals per game and 20 three-point scores.

 

“She plays with a lot of heart,” Lewis said of her senior shooting guard. “When she’s out, the energy flow on the floor is a hundred percent different.

 

“We’re going to miss a spark on the team. We’re hoping one of the girls will step into that role next year.”
The Wolves finish 11-14 for the campaign.

Trojans triumph in first round

The Wolves kept it much closer this time around, but Olympic still has Sequim’s number.

 

The Olympic Trojans topped Sequim 66-54 in the first round of the West Central District playoffs on Feb. 15 at Foss High School in Tacoma.

 

Jalyn Halstead and Shannon Jackson scored 17 points each to lead the Trojans (14-9).

 

Hopson led Sequim with 22 points, seven rebounds and five steals while Harrison added 14 points in the losing effort.

 

After falling to the Trojans by 20 points in their last meeting, the Wolves battled toe-to-toe with Olympic for three quarters before fading in the final quarter.

 

After Sequim jumped out to a 6-2 lead in the opening minutes Olympic battled back to lead 14-11 after one quarter and 31-27 at halftime.

 

“We … definitely came out and played a lot better defense (than in previous games),” Lewis said.

After Halstead sank a pair of 3-pointers, Sequim fought back and closed to within five at 39-34 on a pair of Hopson hoops and scores by Harrison and Columbia Haupt.

 

Olympic got to the free-throw line 20 times in the fourth quarter, hitting 11 freebies and outscoring Sequim 25-18.

Reach Michael Dashiell at miked@sequimgazette.com.