Edmonds-Woodway came into Wednesday’s rematch with the Lynnwood girls basketball team hoping to prove the Warriors belonged in the discussion as to who was the top team in the Wesco South. The Warriors kept it close for the first half, but the Royals’ 24-point third quarter and E-W’s 28 turnovers were too much to overcome as Lynnwood won the game 78-55 and also the South division.
“We brought pressure onto them rather than let them dictate to us,” said Royals coach Everett Edwards. “This was a big game. This dictates who’s going to get the top seed out of the South.”
The Royals started out quickly, making three consecutive 3-pointers — one each from Dani Hayes, Reilly Walsh and Jordyn Edwards — to give them a 9-2 lead in the first quarter. “That was a great start,” Coach Edwards said. Lynnwood would continue to control the pace, ending the quarter up 22-7.
The Warriors’ offense began to settle down in the second quarter. With the score at 31-13, E-W was able to rattle off nine straight points — on a Natalie Kasper 3-pointer, back-to-back, coast-to-coast drives by Missy Peterson and a basket and free throw from Claire Fyfe. “We did a better job of running our offense tonight,” said Warrior coach Rebekah Wells. “It kept us in the game.”
Edmonds-Woodway was able to limit the deficit to nine heading into the half, trailing 38-29. “Edmonds-Woodway was bringing the thunder a bit tonight, ” said Everett Edwards. Kasper paced the Warriors at the half with 11, while Jordyn Edwards led a balanced Royals attack with 10. “When you play a team with great shooters like that, it’s tough to stop everyone,” Coach Edwards said.
Both teams began scoring at a brisk pace in the third quarter, and for awhile it looked like the Warriors would be able to continue to hang with the No. 1 team in the state, trailing by only 10 points at the half-way mark. But, as it often does, the Royals defense stepped up, forcing multiple turnovers that led to fast- break points. Lynnwood closed out the quarter on a 15-6 run to take a 19-point lead into the fourth quarter. Mikayla Pivec scored 10 of her 17 second-half points in the frame.
“I was working hard, trying to get my shots and also just working on put-backs,” said Pivec.
“I know Coach Wells had a box-and-one strategy to stop her,” Coach Edwards said of Pivec, “but her skill as a player allowed her to fight through that.”
Lynnwood continued to roll in the fourth, starting out on a 10-3 run with only a 3-pointer by Mady Burdett for E-W in the way. Pivec would add seven more for the Royals, finishing the game with 25 to lead all scorers, while teammate Edwards added 16. Moni Jackson had 14 for E-W, followed closely by Kasper’s 13, Peterson’s 12 and Fyfe’s 11.
Wells was philosophical after her team’s loss, a game that most observers would agree was much more tightly contested than the previous match-up between the two teams, despite the lopsided final score. “We beat them in the second quarter. We can play with them,” Wells said. “You can’t have 30 turnovers and expect to win. Even though we only scored 7 points in the first quarter, we came back and scored 22 in the second. They didn’t beat us because of skill level. They beat us because of turnovers, which is something we can work on.
“Lynnwood doesn’t have many teams score 50 on them,” Wells added. “We were able to run our offense. That was encouraging.”
Lynnwood travels to Glacier Peak and concludes its season Monday against Shorecrest. E-W, meanwhile, is on the road Friday at Shorecrest before returning home Monday to face Glacier Peak — a game that will likely decide who gets the second seed out of the South.
Lynnwood (10-0, 17-1) 20 18 24 16 78
E-Woodway(8-2, 15-3) 7 22 14 12 55
Lynnwood scoring: Walsh 6, Cooper 9, Edwards 16, Pivec 25, Rogers 12, Boston 4, Hayes, 6, Ever, Grant, Fahey
E-W scoring: Burdett 3, Kasper 13, Fyfe 11, Jackson 14, Peterson 12, Wooley, Ortega, Cooper, Jones, Bakken
— By Jeff Smarr
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