Noyes leads Chiefs over Suns

MOSES LAKE — Moses Lake senior Carly Noyes began Friday night’s game with Southridge just five points shy of the Columbia Basin Big Nine’s all-time scoring mark.

She finished the game with 22 points, the record and a 61-40 victory over the Suns.

It took Noyes less than eight minutes Friday night to move past Kennewick graduate Emily Faurholt’s career mark of 1,660 points (1997-2001) and the fifth-ranked Chiefs took an early 18-12 lead over Southridge.

The Chiefs controlled the tempo of the contest during the first quarter before the Suns began to heat up — especially Southridge’s  Jenna Wallace.

Wallace scored 16 of her team-leading 19 points in the first half and Moses Lake struggled from the floor in the second quarter.

With Wallace’s hot hand, the Suns were able to turn a 18-12 deficit to start the second quarter into a 27-24 lead heading into the half.

Moses Lake head coach Matt Strophy was not impressed with his team’s performance in the first half Friday night.

“We didn’t play very well in the first half,” he said. “Our shooting wasn’t there.”

While the Suns held a three-point lead after the first 16 minutes Friday night, the final 16 minutes were all Moses Lake.

The Chiefs began the third quarter with intensity and charisma and it showed to start the third quarter.

Moses Lake began the second half with a 10-0 run and the Chiefs pushed a half-time deficit into a 45-37 third quarter lead.

With the No. 2 district seed and a home game in the first round of the district playoffs at stake, the Chiefs did not waver. Moses Lake smothered Southridge, holding the Suns to only three fourth-quarter points as the Chiefs dominated the second half for a 61-40 victory.

Noyes pushed her Big Nine all-time scoring record to 1,677 points and the senior led all scorers Friday night with. Noyes also grabbed nine rebounds to fall one shy of a double-double.

Strophy said he was glad to be a part of Noyes’ record-breaking night.

“It’s a really fun thing to be a part of,” he said. “As a coaching staff, you like to think we had a part in it. But she did all of the work.”

Kelly Sutherland had 10 points for the Chiefs and added six steals and Jordan Loera added 12 points to go along with four assists.