Sports
Tides girls advance to regional game while Seahawks suffer season-ending loss
In a close, physical game indicative of two teams whose seasons would end with a loss, Gig Harbor defeated the young, talented Kennewick Lions, 63-51, in a District 3/4 3A girls basketball playoff Tuesday night at home to keep its state tournament aspirations alive.
Peninsula, however, traveled all the way to eastern Oregon and dropped a 74-61 decision to the Hermiston Bulldogs, ending the Seahawks’ season.
Gig Harbor came out in the first quarter moving the ball well and getting quality shots.
“I thought it was one of our best halves of the season, on offense for sure,” said Coach Mike Guinasso.
Though fundamentally sound defensively, the young Lions displayed poor shot selection, launching from beyond the 3-point line despite possessing a size advantage. They shot 31 times from beyond the arc and made just six, or 19%.
The Tides sank 9 of 26 threes for 35%, a reasonable percentage. That discrepancy and free throw shooting down the stretch were the difference as both teams played with similar effort and desire.
Guinasso got buckets on three successive possessions in the fourth quarter after time outs, designing plays on his clipboard that caught the Lions off guard despite Kennewick taking two timeouts. The Tides listened and executed, scoring immediately and never allowing Kennewick to close the gap in the fourth quarter.
Sensing that the Lions might press after a time out, Guinasso had the ball entered in the middle, swung to the sideline, advanced by passes without dribbling to half court where Riley Peschek made a crosscourt pass to a wide-open Olivia Paul who snapped the net for her fifth 3-pointer. Her sixth came quickly afterward on a play where she was left alone in the left corner and was all net, capping an 18-point night.
Gig Harbor got usual strong performances from Tia Berry, who doesn’t force shots and plays her role willingly, and Taylor Schwab, who scored a quiet 18 points with eight of them from the free throw line where she was perfect. The sophomore added seven assists and grabbed 11 rebounds from her guard spot, including a crucial offensive board in traffic during the fourth quarter to draw a foul and hit two free throws to keep momentum.
Peschek got into foul trouble for much of the third and early fourth quarter, but came back to the floor with a pick-and-slip lay-up, calming the ship and bringing it into shore with another inside basket in crunch time, totaling 14 points and 11 rebounds. Baylee Young had a stat-stuffing game with seven points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals while handling point guard duties and pushing the tempo.
Next up for the Tides is a winner-to-the-Tacoma Dome or loser-out regional game against the 12th-seeded Bonney Lake Panthers of the Pierce County League. The game will be held at Auburn High School on Saturday at 2 p.m. Tickets can be purchased on the website gofan.co
“It will be super competitive,” Guinasso said. “They’re a team that does what they do best, so we should have a pretty good feel after scouting as to how they play. They’re both good shooting teams, both can run. It’s going be a good game for sure.”
Hermiston 74, Peninsula 61
The Seahawks, who had survived a couple elimination games this postseason, couldn’t get the third.
The Bulldogs jumped out early, tripling the score at 21-7 in a sluggish first quarter for Peninsula. Hermiston scored another 21 points in the second period to take a commanding 42-23 lead at the halftime break. Peninsula outscored Hermiston 38-32 in the second half, but couldn’t make up for its slow start.
Freshman Grace Richardson, foreground, will be among a talented group returning next year. Photo courtesy of Bryce Carithers
Sophomore Kaylia Heidelberg led the Seahawks with 27 points, junior Brooke Zimmerman netted 12 and senior Makena Smith chipped in eight.
The loss ends the high school careers of four seniors — Smith, Ryley Redal, Abrielle Riebe and Ari Barrientes-Smith — who Schick continuously praised for their effort, toughness and leadership. They and others have much to be proud of after finishing third in the South Sound Conference at 10-5. They played a difficult schedule, but wrapped up the season with a 14-8 record.
The future looks bright for the Seahawks as they return leading scorer and lights-out shooter Heidelberg and athletic freshman Grace Richardson. Plus, one of their leading scorers and rebounders, the dependable Zimmerman, will return for her senior year along with guard Sophie Casello, who is quick and a good defender. In addition, the Seahawks have a group of talented freshmen reserves led by Kitana King. She battled injuries, but should return to full health next season and contend for a starting spot, as well as other emerging freshmen Breanna New, Ashley Edmonds and Madden Jackson.
Schick has the nucleus of a strong team that got a ton of experience this season. With lessons learned and a lot of hard work in the summer and just maybe a couple of those tall, athletic volleyball players turning out for the team next year, and the Seahawks will be contending for the South Sound Conference title in 2023.