Lady Devils take control

Wilson Creek 61, Moses Lake Secondary School 16; Moses Lake Christian Academy 66, Easton 21; Ellensburg 70, Othello 48; LaSalle 71, Royal 25

MOSES LAKE — It was quick, efficient, and effective.

The Wilson Creek Lady Devils basketball team planned on coming into Moses Lake to take care of business at Columbia Basin Secondary School and maintain their spot atop the 1B North Central Washington (NCW) league Tuesday night.

Mission accomplished.

Ksenja Fredere had 18 points, nine rebounds, and six steals to lead the Lady Devils to a 61-16 win over The Phoenix to maintain their unbeaten record in league play.

Wilson Creek (5-3, 5-0) also received 16 points from Holly Wilson, 14 rebounds from Brenna Stevens, and five steals from Jackie Treat in the win.

“It was our goal to come out strong tonight,” Wilson Creek coach Dennis Treat said. “We have some tough games left this week with Mansfield and Pateros and we wanted to set the tone tonight for the week and we did a good job doing that.”

The tone was set after the first quarter when Wilson Creek jumped to a 19-1 lead in the first eight minutes.

They would build their lead to 34-5 at halftime and use the second half to substitute liberally.

“We are a work in progress,” Dennis Treat said. “This was the best game we’ve played so far this season. We’ve been rough around the edges and tonight we played a much better game overall.”

The Lady Devils were also hoping to see some improvements in their energy levels and commitment.

“We took care of the ball a lot better and we were hoping to run the floor a lot more effectively and play with passion and I think we did that,” Dennis Treat said. “We still have a ways to go but it was a good step for us.”

Crystal Lloyd led Columbia Basin Secondary (0-7) with eight points and Mariah Rippy added seven points.

Phoenix coach Ashlee Holten declined to comment.

Moses Lake Christian Academy 66, Easton 21

EASTON — Kim Wilde sang the hit song “Kids in America” in the early 80s.

In the 21st century the Moses Lake Christian Academy Lady Lions are the ‘Really Young Kids Playing Basketball.’

Despite starting two freshman and an eighth-grader, the Lady Lions won their fifth game out of their last six outings with a 66-21 dismantling of Easton last night.

After a slow start saw the Academy (6-3, 2-2 in 1B NCW) expanded a 14-8 lead to 29-8 with a 15-0 second quarter.

“It took us a little while to settle down,” Lady Lions coach Bryce McPartland said. “Its a two-hour bus ride here and we got off the bus a little sluggish. The biggest difference was the girls getting settled into the game. We were 0-3 on the road and with this being our first win on the road it’s important for a team as young as we are.”

Eighth-grader Susan Timofeyev led with 25 points and 10 rebounds while freshman Rachel Verhage pitched in with 16 points and 17 rebounds. Freshman Madison Yamane added 12 points.

“I think the younger girls have really stepped it up,” Academy junior and captain Christina Firouzi said. “In our league you can’t play young, but they have really worked hard in practice and stepped up with the big girls.”

Ellensburg 70, Othello 48

ELLENSBURG — The Lady Huskies of Othello fell 70-48 at Ellensburg (8-0, 7-0) on Tuesday night.

Othello (1-6, 1-6 in CWAC) was led by Kylee Mollotte with 15 points while Tiffany Martinez added 10 points.

Mollotte also had five rebounds and four assists in a losing cause for the Huskies.

LaSalle 71, Royal 25

ROYAL — Hit hard early the Royal Lady Knights fell at home to LaSalle 71-25 last night.

LaSalle took a 20-4 lead at the end of the first quarter and eventually led 45-7 at halftime over Royal (1-9).

“We didn’t show any fight and that was disappointing,” Royal coach Brock Anderson said. “The score speaks for itself. We were intimidated and they were a good team.”

Leslie Brown led Royal with 11 points.