Lady Huskies show fight in loss to Ellensburg

OTHELLO — The Othello Huskies (4-15) suffered a loss to the Ellensburg Bulldogs 67-16 at home Tuesday. Despite the loss, head coach Caleb Tovar said he was proud of how his players fought to the very end.   

“We knew what we were going to have to deal with going into it,” Tovar said. “I thought the girls showed resilience; they kept fighting all the way to the end, and I felt like the second half looked better than the first half. There's some good things to take away from it, but unfortunately, these kinds of games show the girls where all that offseason work comes in.”  

The Bulldogs jumped out to a 24-2 lead in the first quarter behind a fast-paced offense and an imposing defense in transition. From there, they built their lead over the second quarter in an identical fashion to the first. Before they knew it, the Huskies trailed 48-4 at halftime. In the second half, the Huskies' defense slowed down the Bulldogs, but the hill was too steep to climb as they fell short at home. Tovar had a positive message to his team after the game.   

“We just got to keep playing hard and hope that one day we get to where these girls are at, because not everyone gets to play a state-caliber team, and I feel like we got three of them in our league. Enjoy the moment. Play hard and keep trying to get better,” Tovar said.   

In the first half, the Bulldogs were effective with ball movement and transition defense. This allowed them to create multiple turnovers and build a 24-2 lead fast. In the second quarter, the Ellensburg ball movement helped them find open shooters against the Huskies zone defense. By halftime, they built a 44-point lead.   

“The other thing they do is utilize their bigs, they got a couple of posts that have some legit post moves. They're legitimate post players, so it's tough to handle that when our only bigs are like sophomore girls who have never had to play a post position before, so they're still kind of learning the game,” Tovar said.   

In the second half, the Huskies defense slowed down the Bulldogs’ offense. They held them to 19 points over the third and fourth quarters. However, the hole was to deep to climb out of as Ellensburg remained effective on defense to prevent a comeback attempt. Tovar said his players responded positively to his halftime message, where he asked them to show them a different team. 

“‘Let's show that we can play with some heart no matter what the outcome is.’ I felt like even though we were tired, they were moving a little bit more, they were rotating more. They were at least contending the ball a little bit more, making it more difficult for them to score,” he said.   

Despite the loss, the Huskies had plenty to celebrate as they recognized their seniors ahead of their final home game at Othello. For the varsity squad, Shaylee Freeman received her poster and flowers ahead of their game against the Bulldogs. Tovar said her positive attitude and work ethic will be missed next season.   

“I've never heard a complaint from her. I've never heard anything negative out of her. She plays volleyball, she's a really good tennis player. Basketball is kind of a third sport that she does just to stay in shape during the wintertime. Her attitude and her character is second to none for sure,” Coach said.   

The Huskies will conclude the regular season Friday at East Valley at 5:30 p.m.  

“We lost to them by seven points the first time around. It's definitely a winnable game for us, depending on if we come out ready to play,” Tovar said.   

BOX SCORE:   

EBRG: 24-24-10-9: 67
OTHL: 2-2-7-5: 16 

    Autumn Weynes, in white, comes to a halt to make a pass to an open teammate against the Ellensburg Bulldogs Tuesday.
  

    Khloe Valdez (2) drives past an Ellensburg defender during their game Tuesday.
  

    Shaylee Freeman (30) shoots a free throw against the Ellensburg Bulldogs Tuesday. Head Coach Caleb Tovar praised Freeman’s attitude and character as a player this season.