Morris' hot start, team's solid finish leads Chiefs

Moses Lake 63, Davis 53; Moses Lake Christian Academy 34, Mansfield 18

YAKIMA — Taking care of business, the Moses Lake High School girls basketball team built an early lead and kept hosts Davis at arms-length in a 63-53 win last night.

Tiffany Morris came out on fire scoring 10 of her 13 points in the first quarter, helping stake the Chiefs to a 30-20 halftime lead.

“It was definitely important to come together and work well especially offensively,” Morris said. “It was great and we needed the win to keep up our morale. I think we have a lot ahead of us and are going to keep working hard to get there.”

Throughout the second half Davis kept making a push at Moses Lake (6-8, 4-2) but couldn’t quite get over the hump.

“Davis is a lot better team than people expect them to be,” Moses Lake coach Matt Strophy said. “They pressured well and that frustrated us. They really attacked the offensive glass and that’s a weakness of ours.”

Moses Lake battled foul trouble all night but held off their determined hosts.

“There were things we were doing exceptionally well we just need to bring in the consistency,” Strophy said. “Davis helped make us more inconsistent than we’d like to be. That poise late in the fourth quarter where we extended the lead back up we hit a couple of free throws, and got some lay ins and that was nice to see.”

Kayla Bernsen led the way for Moses Lake with 17 points and 12 rebounds and Jordan Loera added 15 points.

“It was not so much having killer instinct but it was cold blooded control and confidence that got the job done,” Strophy said.

Moses Lake Christian Academy 34, Mansfield 18

MOSES LAKE — It was one of the more physical contests of the season for the Moses Lake Christian Academy Lady Lions but they found a way to play their game in defeating visiting Mansfield 34-18 last night.

The Academy (9-3, 4-2) capitalized on an 8-0 run to start the fourth quarter to blow past Mansfield and take their eighth victory in their past nine games.

“Tonight was a physical, brutal basketball game between a team that battles on every possession, in Mansfield,” Lady Lions coach Bryce McPartland said.

Despite their offense struggling to score it was the Lady Lions’ defense that kept their visitors in check as Mansfield connected on more thrown elbows than shots during the game’s 32 minutes.

The Academy led 10-3 after the first quarter and 18-8 at halftime.

“I cannot say enough about the girls’ defensive effort,” McPartland said. “Abby Garrett and Kristina Firouzi both did a phenomenal job at the top of our 1-2-2.”

Melissa Verhage scored a season-high 14 points to help keep Mansfield at bay, especially during the third quarter when the Lady Lions’ saw their lead shrink to 27-18 with eight minutes left.

“They really got after it and made things very difficult for Susan Timofeyev and Rachel Verhage to do their thing,” McPartland said. “I was tremendously proud of Melissa who really put our team on her back and carried us to victory.”

Timofeyev finished with seven points and seven rebounds.

“Offensively, we continue to be a work in progress, but tonight,” McPartland said. “Defensively, holding a team like Mansfield’s to 18 points was beyond  expectation.”