Top-ranked Woodinville girls roll over No. 5 Lake Stevens in District 1/2 championship game: 'Those kids all love each other'
EVERETT, Wash. — Woodinville senior Tatum Thompson said it is years of experience playing together and the chemistry that those years have produced that leads to the connection on the floor between her and her teammates.
That chemistry may never have shown brighter than it did in Friday’s 63-36 victory over fifth-ranked Lake Stevens in the 4A District 1/2 championship game.
Junior Brooke Beresford led the way for the No.1-ranked Falcons with 15 points, Thompson added 14, senior Veronica Sheffey scored 12 and sophomore Jacey Eggers added eight points in the win over the Vikings. Together, the four combined to outscore the entire Vikings team 49-36.
“We’re all around the same age, but we’re all in our own grade in select (basketball),” Thompson said. “Most of us were the leading players (on those teams). Now that we’re all on the same team, we have all these scorers and we’ve been playing (together) since freshman and sophomore year, so we have that chemistry – and also chemistry from hanging out outside of basketball.”
Thompson and Sheffey have shouldered much of the scoring load this season, but Friday Beresford and Eggers were able to lighten the load on the two talented seniors.
“That really makes me happy seeing the scoring distributed like that,” Woodinville head coach Scott Bullock said. “A lot of times, it’s Tatum and Veronica, but Brooke was fantastic today and so was Jacey. Obviously, we’re a better team when more players are contributing in that way.
“Those kids all love each other. We have this thing that we talk about, ‘If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.’ This game is fun when it’s together. That was nice to see.”
The Falcons’ defense was outstanding during the first half, holding the Vikings to just 13 points. They were also able to get out in transition leading to several easy baskets as the lead swelled.
“I thought our kids were awesome on the defensive end of the floor today,” Bullock said. “We lost them a little bit in transition a couple of times, but other than that, in the halfcourt, we were really, really good.
The Falcons, who have won 22 games in a row, move on to the regional round of the state playoffs and have qualified for the Hardwood Classic at the Tacoma Dome, which takes place March 2-5.
For the Vikings, the sting of the loss won’t last long. They too, have earned a spot in the regional round and the Hardwood Classic.
Lake Stevens coach Randall Edens didn’t lament the loss much after the game, and was already thinking about preparing his team for what comes next.
“We just didn’t put the ball in the hoop,” Edens said. “You need a few of those to go early to kind of settle down a little bit. …We were just too tight early. I thought if we would’ve had a few baskets go in we just would’ve settled down and played. That’s how it goes. Woodinville is good.”
---Aaron Lommers; @aaronlommers.
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