Lady Lions ride defense, balanced attack to victory

MOSES LAKE - Coming off a five-point loss to one of the best 2B programs in the state, the Moses Lake Christian Lady Lions had to be feeling pretty good about themselves.

A close loss to the Waterville Shockers on Saturday night, however, wouldn't have been good enough for Lions head coach Emerson Ferguson and his girls. Instead, Moses Lake Christian used a balanced scoring attack and what, at times, proved to be suffocating full-court pressure, defeating the Shockers 42-37.

Ferguson, the Lions' first-year head coach, felt his team's mental approach to the game was a difference-maker as well.

"I think it had a lot to do with them just believing they're better than they think they are," Ferguson said. "Over the years, that's been a problem."

Moses Lake Christian used a 12-3 run in the second quarter to lead 19-11 at halftime. Most of the damage was done through full-court pressure defense that wound up forcing 28 Waterville turnovers for the game.

"What gets us going is our defense," Ferguson said. They always beg me to press. Once we start pressing, our game just goes."

The Lady Lions played sloppily at times too, turning it over 25 times and shooting just 22 percent. But they managed to fend off every Shocker rally and Ferguson handed a lot of the credit to senior point guard Jessica Jachetta.

Jachetta shot just 3 of 14, but finished with a team-high 12 points and three steals.

"She does a little bit of everything," Ferguson said. "She hasn't had the offensive output that she and I are both expecting. But it's coming along - she's becoming more confident in her shot."

Junior post Esther Timofeyev was coming off a 33-point, 17-rebound night at La Salle on Friday. She didn't come close to matching those numbers Saturday, but her 10 points helped out a lot in a close game.

"Esther has played phenomenally all season," her coach said. "She's learning how to play into her frame. She's learning how to play down low and she has an attitude, which I like."

Heidi Sandberg had eight points, four assists and six steals, while Chelsea Allsbrook led the Lions with seven first-half points. Moses Lake Christian earned a 39-28 edge on the glass, leading to a 17-10 edge in second-chance points.

Waterville used a 6-0 run to pull within two points early in the third quarter. But Jachetta swished a trey from the right win and Sandberg scored on a putback to keep the Lions' lead at five heading to the fourth period.

Kayla Simmons, who led the Shockers with 12 points on 6 of 6 shooting, brought Waterville within a point with 1:23 remaining. The Lions scored the next five points, including a beautiful 3-point play from Timofeyev set up by Sandberg's steal.

Ferguson believed the Shockers' defense is similar to what the Lions will see from some of their North Central League rivals.

Their defensive pressure is the equivalent of say, Pateros and Entiat," he said. "Entiat will be a little bit more organized in their defense, but I think that's a good measuring stick.

Moses Lake Christian will try to keep its momentum going on Friday when it travels to face Almira/Coulee-Hartline at 6 p.m. The team hosts a two-day Christmas tournament before opening league play at Mansfield on Jan. 4.

"I think we're just about where we're going to play, at a nice, high level of basketball," Ferguson said.