PORT ANGELES — The Roughrider basketball girls pulled off another clutch victory, blowing an eight-point lead late, hitting two free throws in the final second to tie and then stuffing their opponent in overtime in a 46-40 win over 3A Bellevue.
Millie Long led the Roughriders with 18 points, five assists, five rebounds and four steals, while Madison Cooke had 16 points and 17 rebounds. Bailee Larson had six points, including a 3-pointer in overtime, and six rebounds.
The win pushes the girls’ record to 11-1 on the season and up to No. 7 in the 2A RPI rankings.
“We were in two different zone defenses during the game; Bellevue was in man-to-man the whole game. Both defenses caused an overall poor shooting night,” said coach Michael Poindexter. “Our offensive success in the second half and overtime came from scoring in transition off turnovers, as well as attacking inside in our half-court offense.”
The Riders managed to build up a 35-27 lead with 2:27 left in the fourth quarter, but the Wolverines came roaring back. The Riders missed two lay-ups and turned the ball over twice to open the door.
Meanwhile, the Wolverines hit a 3-pointer on a defensive breakdown on an inbounds play and scored another three points on a basket and foul on a transition.
The Wolverines hit four free throws in the final 50 seconds to take a 37-35 lead. In the final seconds, Long passed the ball up to Mikkiah Brady, who was fouled on a lay-up attempt with one second left in regulation. Brady made her two free throws to tie the game at 37-all, forcing overtime.
Once in OT, the Riders slammed down on the Wolverines defensively. Larson hit a 3-pointer, and the game remained tied at 40-40 with 1:48 left in overtime when the Riders scored the final six points of the game on four Long free throws and a Cooke basket.
“While Mille and Madi carried us offensively on the night, our entire team played solid defense most of the game,” said Poindexter.
Olympic League 2A Division-leading Port Angeles (5-0, 11-1) returns to league action with a home game Tuesday against second-place Sequim (4-2, 7-3) at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday.
Port Angeles 46, Bellevue 40 OT
Bellevue 7 7 8 15 3— 40
PA 6 7 10 14 9 — 46
Bellevue (40) — Choi 17, Norton 6, Dakad 5, Friend 4, Jochums 3, Jones 3, Bower 2.
Port Angeles (46) — Long 18, Cooke 16, Larson 6, Brady 3, Wood 2, Walker 1, Burke, Politika, Olsen.
Chimacum 42, Aberdeen 24
ABERDEEN — The Chimacum girls survived a slow start and a rugged, physical Aberdeen team to win on the road over a 2A opponent 42-24.
“We were walking in mud a little bit. We were a little slow and they were very physical and rough,” said coach Trevor Huntingford.
The Cowboys only managed 15 points in the first half and went into the break tied with the Bobcats.
“We flat did not shoot the ball well, but we got out of the mud,” Huntingford said.
Huntingford said the Cowboys picked it up on defense, trapping Aberdeen, forcing turnovers and getting into transition, which led to easy buckets. Jada Trafton led Chimacum with 9 steals.
“She was an animal,” Huntingford said.
Team scoring leader Mia McNair didn’t shoot that well, Huntingford said, but she was able to get out and run and picked up a bunch of points in transition, leading the Cowboys with 21 points. She scored 15 of her points in the second half.
Trafton scored six points to go along with her steals.
Chimacum (2-0, 5-5) re-enters league play Tuesday with a home game against Port Townsend (0-3, 1-7) at 7 p.m.
Chimacum 42, Aberdeen 24
Chimacum 6 9 12 15 — 42
Aberdeen 8 7 4 5 — 24
Chimacum (42) — McNair 21, Trafton 6, Yaley 4, Noble 4, Clark 2, Young 2
Aberdeen (24) — Tageant 8, Pruett 5, Walsh 4, Huntingford 3, Chum 4, Orona 2.
