Huge win over Everett nearly offsets two losses
By JOHN GALBREATH Sports Editor
Kallen Shaughnessy, the Lady Spartans’ lone senior, shown here leading a fast break, provides stability to her team on both ends of the court. PHOTO BY JOHN GALBREATH | STANWOOD/CAMANO NEWS
“The players are really looking forward to playing both Snohomish and Cascade again – with different results,” commented head Lady Spartans coach Dennis Kloke after a pair of narrow losses to the Panthers and Bruins last week.
Snohomish edged the Sparts 57-54 despite the local girls playing hard the entire game. “We had some bright spots of execution at times. (However) we lost defensive focus and allowed three big threes against the Panthers and that really hurt our chances for victory,” noted Kloke.
Stanwood led 44-39 entering the final frame but were outscored 18-10 over the last eight minutes of play.
Three different local players tallied double figures. Sarah Titus had 15 while Samantha Kelleigh and Rachel Swartz were close behind with 13 counters apiece.
Others who scored for the Sparts (3-6 in league, 5-8 overall) were Brenda Bingham 8, Kallen Shaughnessy 2, Tarah Murphy 2 and Jade Borseth 2.
Cascade’s Danielle Love, who aspires to be a point guard – at 6-foot-3 – for the Oregon Ducks next season, led all scorers with 16 points while executing a series of well-thought-out maneuvers last Wednesday night.
But even she had to be a bit stunned by the off-the-backboard rebound that caromed into her arms late in the game. Bewildered only briefly, the Eugene-bound senior banked it back through the rim as the klaxon sounded. The result? A 46-45 buzzer-beating victory for the visiting Bruins.
“That was a real heartbreaker,” agreed Kloke, “but I was sure proud how the players bounced back for practice the next day. Brenda Bingham really played Love tough. She had to earn every point. Rachel (Swartz) played big as well with 17 rebounds to go with her 11 points.”
Jade Borseth led the balanced attack with 12 points while Bingham and Swartz contributed 11 apiece to the cause. Shaughnessy 4, Titus 3, Murphy 2 and Kelleigh 2 followed.
“Against Everett (a solid 63-44 win), at times we played our best ball of the season,” said Kloke, “but twice we lost focus and allowed them to get back in the game.”
The Sparts roared back from a mere 44-38 margin at the start of the fourth period to crush any hopes the Seagulls had of winning the WesCo 4A North encounter. “The team was huge in that last quarter – both offensively and defensively.
“Samantha (Kelleigh) came up big against the zone with five 3s and 20 points overall. Jade Borseth led the team with seven assists as well. I was real pleased the way the players moved and shared the ball on offense, getting the ball to the right spots for shot attempts and maintaining defensive focus the entire fourth quarter,” he concluded.
Tallying for Stanwood besides Kelleigh were Swartz 12, Borseth 10, Titus 8, Shaughnessy 5, Bingham 4 and Murphy 4.
