SEQUIM — Sequim handled an inspired Kingston squad 70-61 on Monday to advance to the Olympic League Girls Basketball Championship tonight against rival Port Angeles.
“Kingston played tough defense and hit a lot of 3-point shots,” Wolves coach Linsay Rapelje said. “We missed a lot of little buckets but our defense kept us in the game.”
Sophomore point guard Hannah Bates was Rapelje’s player of the game after posting a well-rounded stat line.
“My player of the game, Hannah Bates, had seven steals, six assists and four rebounds,” Rapelje said. Bates also had six points.
“Melissa Porter had a ton of deflections and attacked the hoop offensively giving her 16 points,” Rapelje said. “Two great defenders inside tonight — Jolene Vaara had four steals and five rebounds and Kalli Wiker had three steals and five rebounds along with her 10 points.”
The Julmist sisters also had productive efforts for Sequim (11-1).
“Jelissa Julmist had 16 points, seven boards and three assists and big sis, Jayla, had a double-double once again with 20 rebounds and 17 points.”
The Wolves will attempt to snap Port Angeles’ 26-game Olympic League winning streak dating back to Jan. 18, 2019 with a win tonight against the Riders.
Sequim 70, Kingston 61
K 12 11 19 19 — 61
S 15 17 24 14 — 70
Kingston (61): Brockman 23, Jorgensen 14, Walker 13, Denning 5, Moon 3, Skinner 3.
Sequim (70): Ja. Julmist 17, Je. Julmist 16, Porter 16, Wiker 10, Bates 6, Vaara 5.
Sequim 70, Kingston 61
Kingston 12 11 19 19 — 61
Sequim 15 17 24 14 — 70
Kingston (61) — Brockman 23, Jorgensen 14, Walker 13, Denning 5, Moon 3, Skinner 3.
Sequim (70) — Ja. Julmist 17, Je. Julmist 16, Porter 16, Wiker 10, Bates 6, Vaara 5.
Napavine 54, Forks 52
FORKS — The Spartans fell on a last-second, contested jump shot in the opening round of the Class 2B Southwest District Tournament.
“As a coach, going into districts, especially for a program that hasn’t had a chance at playoff basketball, this was all you could ask for in a game,” Forks coach David Hurn said.
“Napavine shot the ball better than we expected, they hit four 3s in the first quarter and we were playing catchup a little bit. We kept battling and it was high-intensity, good atmosphere, back-and-forth game.”
Forks whittled down an eight-point Napavine lead to open the fourth quarter and tied the game late.
“We got to the foul line with 20 seconds left down two and Chloe [Leverington] came up clutch with a huge offensive rebound and putback to tie it up,” Hurn said.
“Napavine came down called timeout with 12 seconds left. We changed up our defense and they made a tough, contested shot at the buzzer. It was hard watching that go through given the past year and all the hard work the girls have put into this season. But it was a very fun game to be a part of and we haven’t had a ton of those, so to have a game like this with two balanced teams giving their best was great. Unfortunately, we were on the wrong side.”
Leverington had 14 points in her last game for Forks. Fellow senior Kray Horton had two points while the Spartans third senior Kesia Rowley missed the game due to a mission trip.
“Chloe and Kesia were four-year starters and Kray has been a varsity contributor,” Hurn said.
Hurn said he was proud of the growth his team made in switching up their style of play this year.
“We have a youth infusion, Keira [Johnson], Kadie [Wood] and Kyra [Neel], so it was a different drive and energy,” Hurn said. “We transitioned from being a slower-paced halfcourt team to a fast-break transition offense and everybody bought in and played well in it. To see how we were able to transition without much practice from one style to another was a great thing to see as a coach.”
Johnson had 16 points to close out an outstanding freshman season. Wood and Neal will return as juniors next season.
Napavine 54, Forks 52
Nap. 16 17 13 8 — 54
Forks 13 17 12 10 — 52
Forks (52): Johnson 16, Leverington 14, Wood 10, Neel 10, Horton 2, Sandoval, Wharton, Bouchard.
Napavine 54, Forks 52
Napa. 16 17 13 8 — 54
Forks 13 17 12 10 — 52
Forks (52) — Johnson 16, Leverington 14, Wood 10, Neel 10, Horton 2, Sandoval, Wharton, Bouchard.
Boys Basketball Rainier 61, Forks 57
FORKS — A hot-shooting Mountaineers squad ended the Spartans’ season early in the first round of the Class 2B Southwest District Tournament on Monday.
Rainier’s top two scorers, Jake Jeske and Ian Sprouffske scored 24 points apiece with Jeske hitting six 3s and Sprouffske knocking down three more.
“Hats off to them,they played tough, rebounded tough and shot the ball well,” Forks coach Rick Gooding said. “I don’t think we faced a team that shot that well all year. We knew the Central 2B is a good league and they were right in it with teams. Personally, I don’t feel like I did a good job of coaching. We went from our zone to a switching man defense and I think I took too long getting us out of the zone. ”
Forks also struggled with foul trouble on leading scorer Trey Baysinger and point guard Tony Flores.
“Trey fouled out with about 2:30 minutes left and that obviously didn’t help us,” Gooding said.
Baysinger had 19 points to lead the Spartans. “They ran us through screens and came out with more energy. As a coach I should have got our guys a little more excited to play.”
Forks also was without Raymond Davis, a leading defender for Forks (9-1).
“He makes a world of difference for us,” Gooding said.
The Spartans said goodbye to seniors Baysinger, Flores, Davis, Darrin Horjesi, Kason Steffen and Derrick Beebe.
“Tony was co-MVP of the league with Trey last year and he should be a first-team all-league pick,” Gooding said. “He’s been in this role, the No. 1 on-ball defender with the ball in his hands the last few years and he’s one of those kids you have to have in your lineup.
“Trey has been giving us big-time minutes since he was a freshman. He averaged over 20 points and 14 rebounds this season and everybody had him on their radar, so if he isn’t voted league MVP something is crooked.
Gooding also thanked Horjesi and Beebe for coming out and adding to the team and Steffen for his dedication to the program.
“Kason has come to team camps, shootarounds, he always showed up,” Gooding said. “I’m going to truly miss being around him. I feel bad I didn’t get him in the game tonight, he deserved to play.”
Rainier 61, Forks 57
R 14 20 7 20 – 61
F 9 11 20 17 -57
Forks: Baysinger 19, Pursley 15, Olson 11, Horjesi 8, Flores 2, Beebe 2, Doyle, Northcutt.
Bremerton 75, Sequim 56
SEQUIM — The Wolves couldn’t keep up with the high-octane Knights from the opening quarter and lost in an Olympic League Tournament consolation game on Monday.
Sequim (3-9) was led by sophomore Isaiah Moore’s 23 points.
“The great thing is we were able to have a season and gain experience for our underclassmen playing against schools like PA, NK and Bainbridge and we learned that if we want to be able to compete they are going to have to put the time in to improve,” coach Greg Glasser said.
Sequim graduates Hayden Eaton and Erik Christiansen. “Hayden brought us a lot of energy that will be missed,” Glasser said. “Erik is going to have legendary status because when some of the seniors opted out, he decided to stick with it even though he needed shoulder surgery and basically played the whole season with one arm. “In the future kids are going to have some injuries and owies and we can remind them of Erik.” Glasser is already preparing for a summer league season that begins next week. “The message is that we have needs and these are what they are and whoever is willing to put in the time and the work will be rewarded,” Glasser said.
Bremerton 75, Sequim 56
Brem. 27 9 19 20 — 75
Seq. 15 12 15 14 — 56
Bremerton (75) — Pietz 25, Paden 20, Washington 11, Taylor 8, Wilson 7, White 4.
Sequim (56) — Moore 23, Christiansen 14, Possin 5, Eaton 4, Glasser 3, Carisoza 3, Mooney 2, Wiker 2, Thompson, Smithson, Mingoy, Bess.
(Lonnie Archibald/for Peninsula Daily News) Forks Tony Hernandez-Flores drives towards the basket past Rainier’s Logan Bowers during this district play-off Monday game in Forks. The Spartans lost 61-56 to the Mountaineers.
