EDMONDS — The Peninsula College women won their 51st straight game in the North Region by 52 points, while the men lost to Edmonds 89-74, falling out of playoff position with three region games left.
The women crushed the Tritons 82-30, holding Edmonds to just 21.3 percent shooting (10-for-47) from the floor.
The men needed to beat Edmonds to remain in playoff position. They dropped down to fifth place at 4-7 in the North Region, one game out of the final playoff slot.
The Pirates were tied at 32-32 with 2½ minutes left in the first half, but Edmonds finished the half on a 10-0 run.
The Tritons stretched their lead to 18 points at 67-49 with 9:15 left in the game, but the Pirates clawed back, with a 3-pointer by Patrick Odingo and six straight points in 12 seconds to make it 74-67 with 4:33 left in the game. Edmonds responded with three straight baskets and three straight stops on defense to push the lead to 80-67 with 2:40 left and Peninsula was never able to threaten again.
Cinco McNeal led the team with 17 points, while Odingo had 16 to go with six assists. Port Angeles’ Gus Halberg hit a pair of 3-pointers and scored 11, while Nicolas Hofmann had 13 and Paxton Heitsch 11.
The Pirates (4-7, 5-21) next face Everett (5-6, 12-14) at home at 5 p.m. Wednesday in an important game. If Peninsula wins, the Pirates are right back in the playoff mix. They finish the season with a very winnable game at Olympic (2-9, 4-23) on Saturday and at home against a tough Skagit Valley (10-1, 24-2) squad Feb. 25. If the Pirates can win two out of three of those games, it will help their cause to make the postseason.
Edmonds 89, Peninsula 74
PC 32 42 — 74
Edm. 42 47 — 89
Peninsula (74) — McNeal 17, Odingo 16, Hofmann 13, Heitsch 11, Halberg 11, Tekeste 4, Driver 2.
Women’s Game Peninsula 82, Edmonds 30
EDMONDS — The Peninsula College women’s basketball team got up 22-6 in the first quarter and never looked back to remain in first place in the North Region.
Alecsis Smith led the team with 22 points, seven rebounds and two blocked shots. Makena Patrick scored 15, including 7-for-7 from the free-throw line. Ryana Moss (Neah Bay) had 12 points and five assists, while Kimberlee Brown scored nine and Haley Ostrander and Apsen Fraser each scored eight.
As usual, the Pirates had a huge rebounding edge, 40-23, with six different players with at least five rebounds.
With the win, the Pirates clinched a playoff berth. However, despite the 11-0 record in the North Region, the women just can’t shake Skagit Valley, which is just one game behind at 10-1. The Pirates and Cardinals just so happen to conclude the regular season against each other in Port Angeles on Feb. 25 in what should be a season finale barnburner.
The Pirates (11-0, 19-4) next face Everett (3-8, 7-18) at home at 7 p.m.
Peninsula 82, Edmonds 30
PC 22 22 22 16 — 82
Edm. 6 11 4 9 — 30
Peninsula (82) — Smith 22, Patrick 15, Moss 12, Brown 9, Ostrander 8, Fraser 8, Garcia 4, Myers 2, Caldera 2.
