Chiefs come through in clutch, reach state tournament

File photoJunior guard Kelly Sutherland is one of the reasons Moses Lake's girls are headed to state for the first time. She scored better than 13 points per game to earn first-team all-regional tournament honors.

by Neil Pierson<br>Herald Sports Editor
| February 25, 2008 8:00 PM

Girls basketball recaps

KENNEWICK - Things have come so easily for the Moses Lake girls basketball team for the majority of the season.

So it was only appropriate that the Chiefs' character was severely tested over the weekend at the 4A regional tournament at Toyota Center.

Moses Lake had taken care of the Columbia Basin League regular-season and district titles, but a 48-46 overtime loss to Pasco on Friday cost the Chiefs a shot at the regional title and put a serious hit to their hopes of a first-ever state tournament appearance.

Needing two wins on Saturday to reach Tacoma, Moses Lake got them with a pair of impressive team efforts. First, the Chiefs overcame the Mead Panthers - the team that stopped them at regionals last year - in a 53-46 decision. Then they survived a solid performance from Shadle Park star Lexie Pettersen for a 60-51 victory over the Highlanders.

Moses Lake begins its quest for a state title on Wednesday at the Tacoma Dome, playing the Jackson Timberwolves at 5 p.m. Fourth-ranked Jackson (22-1) features Krista Kingma, a University of Washington recruit, and is coming off a district title victory over No. 3 Lake Stevens.

CBL Most Outstanding Player Carly Noyes scored a game-high 26 points in the win over Shadle to clinch the state berth. Noyes was 9 of 12 from the field and added 11 rebounds, but she got plenty of help as Moses Lake improved to 21-5.

The Chiefs shot 53 percent as a team. Kelly Sutherland, who was named to the all-regional tournament first team, had 11 points, eight assists and three steals. Freshman point guard Jordan Loera played beyond her years again, going for 15 points, six rebounds, four assists and four steals. Senior Ann Noyes added six points and four blocked shots.

Moses Lake led 29-23 at halftime, then used a 16-4 that spanned the third and fourth quarters. Shadle Park got 21 points from Pettersen, a Division I prospect, and narrowed the lead to 55-51 with just over a minute remaining. The Chiefs hit 3 of their last 4 free throws, finishing 13 of 16 at the line.

The Chiefs played solid defense for the most part, limiting the Highlanders to 33 percent shooting (18 of 54).

Earlier on Saturday, the Chiefs dominated Mead in the first quarter, piling up a 16-2 advantage that the Panthers never recovered from.

Mead tied the game at 27-27 in the third quarter, but Loera responded with a 3-pointer that gave Moses Lake the lead for good.

Sutherland poured in 21 points to lead all scorers, and chipped in four assists and three steals. Loera had 19 points, while Carly Noyes had 11 points. Only four of Moses Lake's nine players scored, but the Chiefs overcame some offensive deficiencies by hitting 19 free throws.

Mead's Tifa Puletasi had 14 points, six rebounds and three blocked shots.

Moses Lake had beaten Pasco rather handily in two prior matchups, but the Bulldogs were a different team on Friday. Pasco placed three players in double figures and got the game-winning shot from Kelsie Ramsey with one second left in overtime.

Pasco, which faces Graham-Kapowsin in its state opener, took the lead in the third period and kept it until baskets from Sutherland and Loera knotted the score with 1:17 left in regulation.

Ramsey, a senior who finished with 11 points, injured her knee while celebrating her last-second shot and will likely miss state. Teammates Hayley Hodges (13 points) and Danielle Walter (10 points, six rebounds, six assists) also had key efforts.

Carly Noyes had 13 points for the Chiefs, but only two came after halftime. She added nine rebounds and four blocks. Loera had 12 points, nine boards, four steals and three assists, while Sutherland had 12 points and four steals.

Saturday

Lind-Ritzville 48, St. George's 41

SPOKANE - The Lady Broncos, who'd already wrapped up a 2B state tournament spot, improved their seeding on Saturday with a seven-point win over the Dragons.

Lind-Ritzville (22-4 overall) opens state on Wednesday at Spokane Arena, playing Seattle Lutheran in a 7:30 p.m. tip-off. A first-round wins matches the Broncos against Shoreline Christian or Mossyrock in Thursday's quarterfinals.

Against St. George's, the Broncos took a 30-22 halftime lead and never let up, getting 12 points from Devon Killian and 11 from Katlin Fowles in the process. Lind-Ritzville is making its first state appearance since 2003, when it won the championship.

Prosser 61, Othello 43

YAKIMA - The Lady Huskies fell short of wrapping up their first-ever state tournament berth, but will get another shot beginning Friday.

The fourth-seeded Mustangs, who'd lost both regular-season clashes with Othello, grabbed a 20-5 lead after one quarter and kept the Huskies from doing their usual business - dominating the low post and rebounds.

The Central Washington Athletic Conference champion Huskies had won 18 straight games coming in, but will need to beat Selah on Friday at 6 p.m. to have any shot of reaching state. Selah eliminated Grandview 55-52 on Saturday.

Friday's contest also takes place at East Valley High School. The winner will play on Saturday at Sunnyside, a 4 p.m. start against either East Valley or Wapato for the district's third seed to state.

Prosser freshman sensation Tamara Jones scored 27 points against Othello - 14 of them in the third quarter as the Mustangs took an insurmountable 52-24 lead. The Huskies closed the game on a 19-9 spurt, but it was far too late.

Allison Walker had 21 points for Othello and Courtney Kirkwood added 10. Jordan Brown scored 15 for Prosser, which faces Ellensburg for the district title on Saturday.

Wapato 59, Quincy 54

OTHELLO - In Saturday's CWAC loser-out contest, the eighth-seeded Jackrabbits got a game-high 23 points from Tashia Zamarron, but it wasn't enough to prolong their season.

Quincy (5-17 overall) led 28-23 at halftime, but fifth-seeded Wapato rallied with a 20-10 third-quarter spurt. The Wolves got 13 points from Wanda Wong, 13 from Denise Smiscon and 11 from Bertha Valencia.

Taylor Kunkel had 10 points for the Lady Jacks, while Marisol Lopez and Colleen Knodell tallied seven points apiece.