Chiefs seniority prevails in win

Moses Lake 72, Davis 45; Royal 56, Warden 30; Ephrata 62, Othello 59; Pateros 60, Wilson Creek 37

MOSES LAKE — Senior Night brought the ebbs and flows associated with the highs and lows of playing a final home game in a high school career.

On Tuesday night, the Moses Lake High School Chiefs celebrated such an occasion against visiting Davis and promptly struggled out of the gate, falling behind 10-3.

Yet, once the Chiefs got their bearings and the team got their footing the season home finale turned out as expected with Moses Lake rolling to a 72-45 win.

With the victory, Moses Lake (10-10, 8-4) finished in third place of the Big 9 Columbia Division and secured a .500 regular season following a rocky 1-6 start.

Next the Chiefs travel to either Richland or Walla Walla this weekend for a District playoff game.

Opponent, date, and time was still unofficial as of press time but Moses Lake coach Matt Strophy believed his team would play at Walla Walla on Saturday at 6 p.m.

Strophy hoped to get his team’s momentum going prior to district play and saw his squad come out with their sluggish start against Davis before cutting the deficit to 17-16 at the end of the first quarter.

“We were mainly trying to work in our seniors,” Strophy said. “We kept trying to sub liberally for the rest of that half. It was one of those things where those seniors paid their dues and had the opportunity to be in that starting position especially for those that hadn’t started yet. Unfortunately Davis jumped out on us and our girls got frustrated.”

Strophy noted his squad did begin to settle down and many different players contributed in getting the Chiefs level at 29-29 by halftime.

Then the flood gates opened.

Using his regular starting lineup at the beginning of the third quarter, Strophy watched his team blow out to 25-4 run over the next eight minutes and the rout was on.

“We put our normal starting lineup and said it starts at the defensive end,” Strophy said. “We needed to get our momentum going into the playoffs and that’s how we played. We got some steals and some great rebounds to set up our transition game.”

Megan Sutherland led Moses Lake with 11 points, Jordan Loera added 10 points, and Tiffany Morris finished with 10 points.

Strophy noted the play of freshman post player Sadie Nielsen who ended up with nine points.

“She played with confidence and was physically and mentally tougher than she had been in some of her previous games,” Strophy said. “That was the kind of game we need from her when we go down to Walla Walla since we won’t have Kayla Bernsen with us.”

Bernsen, a 6-5 junior post player, will miss the game due to personal commitments that were known well in advance.

Royal 56, Warden 30

ROYAL CITY — Holding on to slim hopes of a SCAC East district playoff spot, the Royal Lady Knights made sure that whatever elements they could control they did so and with a vengeance.

Playing host to the Warden Lady Cougars, Royal came out strong, leading 14-6 after the first quarter.

However, it took a thwarting of a Warden second-quarter charge before the Lady Knights could finally breathe easy in a 56-30 win on Tuesday night.

Warden (2-17, 1-10) found a way to cut their deficit to 22-20 late in the second quarter before Royal scored the final nine points of the first half.

“We had a big second quarter for us right before Royal hit a three at the end of the quarter,” Warden coach Todd Kisler said. “We were scoring some baskets and moving the ball around really well to get those shots.”

Royal (5-13, 4-7) was led by Leslie Brown’s 23 points and 10 rebounds, but the star senior struggled all evening to get going.

“They really keyed on Leslie and she worked for everything we got,” Royal coach Brock Anderson said. “It was nice to see some other kids step up.”

Maggie Leal pitched in with 12 points while Lacey Stakkeland added 10 points for the Lady Knights.

Warden, who was outscored 14-4 in the fourth quarter, were led by Kacey Kisler’s 11 points and seven rebounds and Emma Bisnett’s 11 rebounds.

“In the third we didn’t come out with much fire,”  Todd Kisler said.  “My defense wasn’t moving their feet and we seemed glued to the floor. They were moving the ball around a lot easier on us.”

Royal needed a loss by Kiona-Benton in last night’s action to stay alive for a potential playoff berth.

No results were available at press time.

Ephrata 62, Othello 59

EPHRATA — The kids may be hitting their stride and just the right time.

Ephrata’s Lady Tigers basketball team captured its third straight Central Washington Athletic Conference (CWAC) win as they held off a late Othello Huskies charge in a 62-59 escape on Tuesday night.

Ephrata (10-7, 9-6) moves two-and-a-half games ahead of sixth-place Quincy and closer to fourth place Wapato (11-5, 9-5) to set up a potential show down for a home district playoff game when the Lady Tigers play the Wolves next week.

Ephrata led 21-11 after the first eight minutes of the game but Othello (7-10. 5-10) started to chip away, cutting the deficit in half, 33-28 by the intermission.

The Lady Tigers built their lead back up to 47-40 going into the fourth quarter and saw Othello make one final charge.

The Lady Huskies had a chance to tie late but a three-point attempt was blocked and Ephrata held on for the win.

Mallory Lotz led Ephrata with 22 points, Kelsey Yennie chipped in with 15 points, Abby Smith scored 12 points, and Heidi Buchert finished with 11 points and 13 rebounds.

Othello was led by the 16 points and eight rebounds of Kylee Mollotte.

Pateros 60, Wilson Creek 37

PATEROS — Wilson Creek had a chance to make a statement heading into district playoff competition next week as they travelled to 1B North Central Washington leaders Pateros last night.

Unfortunately, the host Nannies were the ones making their point over and over again as they jumped out to a 17-3 by the end of the first quarter and a 25-point halftime cushion en route to a 60-37 win.

Pateros (17-5, 13-0) wrapped up the league title with the victory while Wilson Creek (11-6, 11-3) ends the season in second place and will host either Mansfield or Moses Lake Christian Academy in their district playoff opener.

“Pateros came out very hard and very strong and I don’t think we responded,” Wilson Creek coach Dennis Treat said. “They were lot more physical than us and are a lot quicker team. They really came ready to play.”

Wilson Creek only scored 18 points through the first three quarters before their offense got untracked late in the contest

Jackie Treat led the Lady Devils with eight points, four rebounds, and four steals, while Brynna Stevens added nine points.