Sequim girls’ basketball squad (1-6 in league, 2-8 overall) came close to a victory after a string of tough games last week.

At home against the Olympic Trojans on Jan. 11, the Wolves led through three quarters but were outscored 15-10 in the final frame to lose 45-42.

Coach Joclin Julmist said the team worked hard with Hailey Wagner recording a double-double (12 points and 12 rebounds with six offensive boards) to have “her best game of the season.”

The Wolves were ahead 32-30 through three quarters but the Trojans eked out the win in the fourth quarter.

Julmist highlighted Libby Turella’s effort to drive to the basket and score 10 points while snagging four steals on defense.

Taylor Heyting grabbed six rebounds and two steals while Gracie Chartraw recorded six points, five rebounds, and four steals.

At North Kitsap

The night prior, the Wolves traveled to North Kitsap on Jan. 10 where the Vikings more than doubled up the score in a 54-23 loss for Sequim.

The Vikings went up 21-5 in the first quarter, and 29-11 at half. To finish, they outscored the Wolves 25-12 in the second half.

Julmist said it was a tough game as they were unable to match their intensity nor shooting (17.8% from the field). North Kitsap outrebounded the Wolves 33-27.

Chartraw led Sequim with 14 points, five rebounds and four steals, while Heyting had six rebounds.

At PA

The Port Angeles girls basketball team held off a late rally from Sequim thanks to seven straight points from Teanna Clark to help beat the Wolves 47-34 on Jan. 7.

Clark finished with 17 points to lead the Roughriders.

Port Angeles coach Michael Poindexter praised Sequim’s Turella, who returned from injury to hit four 3-pointers, three of them in the first quarter. He said Port Angeles wasn’t sure if she was going to be able to play and they found out immediately she was going to be a big factor in the game.

“She’s a great player, we really respect her game,” Poindexter said. “That’s the best I’ve seen Sequim play for a while. They played well.”

Poindexter said changing defenses slowed the Wolves down after a 16-point fourth quarter. Sequim was only able to score nine points over the second and third quarters combined.

“We all worked really hard on our triangle,” said Clark. “[After] they hit four threes in the first quarter, we had to step it up.”

She said Becca Manson, Mikkiah Stevens and Morgan Politika all played well on defense.

“We played better than we have in the last couple of games,” said Sequim coach Joclin Julmist. “We shot the ball well, our defense was better. Their second chances just killed us.”

Both teams were red-hot from the floor in the first quarter. In addition to Turella’s fireworks, Port Angeles’ Manson countered with two 3-pointers of her own and Sequim’s Chartraw added a first-quarter trey as the teams combined for six treys in the first. The Wolves held a 16-15 lead after the first quarter.

The game slowed down into a defensive struggle as the Riders slowly started pulling away. Port Angeles took a 37-25 lead into the fourth, but the Wolves clawed back, thanks largely to Chartraw. She scored five straight points on a 2-pointer and a 3-pointer then made a nice pass for an assist to Wagner to make the score 37-32 with five minutes left in the game. With plenty of time left, the Wolves were suddenly down just two possessions.

Poindexter said the Riders didn’t panic from Sequim’s 7-0 run in the fourth quarter.

“We try not to jump up and down about runs,” he said.

Clark responded to Chartraw’s outburst with a basket, a bucket and a foul, then another basket to quickly give the Riders a safe lead at 44-32. Stevens finished the scoring for the Riders with a 3-pointer.

“My teammates helped me out [in the fourth]. I know my teammates would be there if I missed so I have a lot of confidence,” Clark said.

Turella ended up going 4-for-9 from 3-point range and scoring 12 points and Chartraw added 10. Wagner and Kiley Winter each scored six and Taylor Heyting had eight rebounds.

For the Riders, Lindsay Smith had 10 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Teanna Clark had four assists and six steals.

Port Angeles outrebounded Sequim 25-21.

Julmist said it was good to see Turella back on the court.

Coming up

The Wolves were set to host Bremerton on Jan. 14 after the press deadline, and travel to Kingston on Jan. 17.