Huskies clinch postseason in victory over Tigers
EPHRATA — The Othello Huskies (4-14) earned a convincing 40-24 victory over the Ephrata Tigers (0-18) to clinch a spot in the postseason. The Huskies aim to finish out the season strong after coming out on top against a league rival.
“We’re feeling really good,” said Huskies senior Shaylee Freeman. “We’re a young team, so they’re learning, they’re getting better.”
The Huskies came out ahead in the first quarter with Khloe Valdez and Abcde Garza putting up a combined nine points, while the Tigers stayed close behind, scoring five points with a three-pointer from Sophie Molitor and a free throw each from Cassidy Cox and Maycee Black.
Both teams came up more offensively in the second quarter as the Huskies and Tigers put up double-digit scores to go into halftime with Othello up 23-15. Ephrata stayed in the game defensively in the second half, but the Huskies remained ahead to outscore the Tigers by three and win the game 40-26.
Huskies Head Coach Caleb Tovar said he was pleased with how the Huskies performed in this rivalry matchup and how the team responded to picking up the pace to earn the victory. The shift came on the defensive end as Othello switched their coverage style and forced Ephrata to change their strategy.
“Ephrata came out and they played really hard, you could tell that they wanted it and it almost was a little bit surprising for our girls,” he said. “They had to snap out if it and pick it up themselves and once they were able to match their intensity, I think we were able to pull away a little bit.”
While it was a tough loss, Tigers head coach Alain Black said she was happy with how well the Ephrata defense held up the Huskies and the effective ball handling from the players as they kept turnovers to a minimum. The big struggle came from scoring when they had the opportunities.
“We had the shots that we wanted, they just weren’t falling in,” said Black.
She said the young Tigers team proved that they have the ability to compete at a high level and it’ll just take some more work to get the team where they want to be. With the end of the regular season approaching, it’ll just be important to keep that competitive spirit strong within the girls.
“Right now we’re building and all these little things that we’re doing are going to soon pay off,” said Black.
As the Huskies prepare to round out the regular season, Tovar said it’ll come down to getting better offensively. Throughout the season, he saw how much they have improved on all aspects of the game and hopes that they continue that momentum and build up their confidence in the coming weeks.
Othello is also keeping an eye out for one of the starters, Meila Zuidema, who was taken out of the game due to injury. It is unknown how long the player will be out for, but the Huskies coach said there are players who are ready to step up and fill the role.
Now that the Huskies have secured a spot in the district tournament, the goal for the team is to focus on adding more wins to their record to gain a higher slot in the bracket, said Tovar.
“We’ll just have to keep playing our game and see what happens,” he said. “In the end, we’ll have to play the best.”
With postseason on the horizon, Freeman said the Huskies are focused on their continued improvement in the basics as the young team builds themselves up for the competition ahead. So far, the young players have already shown significant improvement in their skills, which has Freeman feeling excited about the team’s future.
“The girls are so sweet, they’re so fun to play with,” she said. “We all work really hard, and it’s just fun to win and play as hard as we can.”
The Huskies will continue travelling for their next game as they head to Selah on Friday at 5:30 p.m. The Tigers head on the road Friday to face Ellensburg at 5:30 p.m.
BOX SCORE:
OTHL: 9-14-10-7: 40
EPHT: 5-10-7-4: 26
Jillian Linehan, a sophomore from Ephrata, shoots from the three-point line during the final quarter against Othello.