LAKEWOOD — The Port Angeles basketball boys didn’t exactly get revenge for their playoff ouster last year, but the Roughriders showed the South Puget Sound League they can play with the Tacoma/Seattle area teams.
The Riders beat Clover Park of the SPSL 65-56 on Saturday. Clover Park beat Port Angeles last year at district by three points for the final slot to the state 2A tournament.
Clover Park doesn’t have the best overall record at 3-10, but the Warriors have played some strong 2A teams in the SPSL and the Seattle metro area close. The Warriors are also a deep team, as nine players scored against the Riders.
Coach Kasey Ulin said the Riders played some clutch ball to hold off the Warriors, who roared back from an eight-point halftime deficit to tie the game in the third quarter.
“I thought our guys played extremely hard,” Ulin said. “I was really proud of how our guys stayed composed.”
With the game tied at 53-53 in the fourth, the Riders went on a 12-3 run to close out the game, with Kyle Benedict sparking the run with a 3-pointer.
Ulin said Liam Clark had two big dunks in the fourth quarter and finished with nine points in the fourth, while Garrett Edwards had eight points in the Riders’ 23-point fourth.
Benedict led the team with five 3-pointers and 22 points, while Edwards had 15 and Clark 15. Clark added 15 rebounds, while Edwards shot 6 for 8 from the floor.
One of the Riders’ best stats of the game — they shot 8 for 8 from the free-throw line.
“This was a great test for us,” Ulin said.
The Roughriders (5-1, 10-4) play Kingston (0-7, 0-14) on the road Tuesday. You never want to overlook an opponent, but Ulin is already looking forward to the Roughriders’ Friday night home game against first-place North Kitsap. It took a 3-pointer by the Vikings in the final seconds to beat Port Angeles in Poulsbo earlier this season and Port Angeles has been looking forward to the rematch ever since.
Port Angeles 65, Clover Park 56
PA 19 14 9 23 — 65
CP 15 10 15 16 — 56
Port Angeles (65) — Benedict 22, Edwards 15, Clark 15, Schmidt 5.
Clover Park (56) — Matin 9, McDaniel 8, Roberts 8, Patterson 6, Bell 6, Anderson 6, Portillo 5m Kinemia 4, Mosely 4.
La Conner 63, Neah Bay 49
LA CONNER — The Neah Bay boys were undone by a rough fourth quarter in a 63-49 road loss to La Conner.
The game was close until the fourth, as the Red Devils entered the final quarter down just 47-44. But the Braves outscored Neah Bay 16-5 over the final eight minutes to pull away.
Jay Brunk and Sean Bitegeko led the Red Devils with 13 points each, with Bitegeko adding 15 rebounds. Cameron Moore had 2 points and Keith Johnson Jr. nine.
Neah Bay (3-0, 7-6) will next host Clallam Bay (2-1, 4-5) at 7:15 p.m. Wednesday in a return to North Olympic League 1B play.
La Conner 63, Neah Bay 49
Neah Bay 18 10 16 5 — 49
La Conner 20 17 10 16 — 63
Neah Bay (49) — Brunk 13, Bitegeko 13, Moore 12, Johnson 9, Soeneke 2.
La Conner (63) — Cram 18, Tripp 15, Liddel 12, Porter 9, Casey 3, Olson 3, Hulbert 3.
Girls Basketball
West Seattle 68, Port Angeles 49
WEST SEATTLE — The Port Angeles girls went up against a exceptionally good 3A school on the road in West Seattle, and fell 68-49.
West Seattle is 12-1 and the No. 5 ranked 3A team in the state in RPI. The beat Sequim earlier this season 76-51.
Coach Michael Poindexter said going up against such a good team is good preparation for the playoffs. The Olympic League 2A Division-leading Roughriders have all but clinched postseason midway through the season.
“West Seattle’s transition game was the best we’ve seen this year, as was their half-court defense. As the game progressed we got back better on defense, but their points in transition hurt us quite a bit in the first half and at times in the third quarter,” Poindexter said.
“The game gave us a good look at the improvements we need to make in the month as we prepare for postseason play,” he said.
Madison Cooke led the team with 17 points, while Jaida Wood scored 16 and Eve Burke 10.
Port Angeles (6-0, 12-2) will host Kingston (3-4, 6-8) at 7:15 p.m. Tuesday before getting ready for a titanic road game on Friday against second-place North Kitsap (5-1, 8-5), with first place in the Olympic League 2A Division at stake.
West Seattle 68, Port Angeles 49
PA 15 12 8 14 — 49
WS 20 23 17 8 — 68
Port Angeles (49) — Cooke 17, Wood 26, Burke 10, Brady 4, Long 2, Larson, Politiak, Olsen, Cargo.
West Seattle (68) — Fiso 18, Sarver 11, Gagles 11, Lenzie 10, Wilon 6, Babito 5, Horne 3, Young 2, McPhee 2.
La Conner 47, Neah Bay 44
LA CONNER — The Neah Bay girls for the second time this season were unable to knock off La Conner, falling in a close one 47-44 on the road.
La Conner is a good 2B team with a 9-2 record and a No. 3 RPI ranking among 2B schools. In the opening game of the year, the Braves beat the Red Devils by 24 points. In this game, the contest came down to an 11-2 second quarter for the Braves. The rest of the game, Neah Bay outscored La Conner 42-36.
Cei’J Gagnon led the Red Devils with 11 point, while Ruth Moss had nine and Laila Greene and Ocean Aguirre each scored seven. Moss led the team with eight rebounds.
Neah Bay (3-0, 10-2) next plays the Sequim JV at 5:15 p.m. today at home, then will play Muckleshoot at home at 6 p.m. Tuesday.
La Conner 47, Neah Bay 44
Neah Bay 14 2 13 15 — 44
La Conner 7 11 14 15 — 47
Neah Bay (44) — Gagnon 11, Moss 9, Greene 7, Aguirre 7, P. Swan 4, C. Swan 4, Cummins 2.
La Conner (47) — Benson 17, Swanson 14, Cram 8, Lagerwey 4, Herrera 4.
