After not stepping onto a court since Jan. 10, the Edmonds-Woodway Warriors’ girls basketball team was faced with shaking off the doldrums, dusting off the basketballs and returning to action with a daunting assignment Thursday: Take on the state’s No. 4-ranked Arlington Eagles.
The test proved too tough for E-W.
The Warriors lost to the Eagles 60-34 in a key Wesco League girls’ hoops contest played at Edmonds-Woodway High School.
The defeat was the first for the Warriors’ in Wesco League play this season.
Arlington took control of the contest with a big third quarter, outscoring E-W 21-6; the Eagles were never challenged for the rest of the game.
Early on, the Warriors looked like a team that wasn’t rusty from a long layoff, jumping out to an early 12-5 lead in the game by converting four of their first five shots — all from beyond the three-point arc. But Arlington caught fire themselves with a 10-0 run to close the first quarter.
E-W then climbed back to a 23-23 tie at 19 seconds into the third quarter on an AJ Martineau drive and lay-in. But the Eagles broke away with another big run, this time 14-2, to break the Warriors’ spirit, go on to claim the victory and undoubtedly solidify their No. 4 ranking in the WIAA 3A state RPI ranking.
Jenna Villa, a 6-foot-1 freshman, came off the bench to spark Arlington’s big third quarter with eight of her 11 points in the game.
The Eagles’ Keira Marsh — just a sophomore — led all scorers in the contest with 15 points.
Jadyn Waram scored 12 points to lead the Warriors, but the senior had only three points in the second half — all from converted free throws — as she and her E-W teammates went ice cold from the field after halftime. The Warriors shot just 14.3% (2-for-14) after intermission.
A swarming Arlington defense — both in the half-court and with a full-court zone press — made life difficult for the Warriors all night. E-W was forced into making 29 turnovers in the game while the Eagles committed just 11 (and none in the decisive third quarter).
Edmonds-Woodway coach Jon Rasmussen credited Arlington with playing well on Thursday. “This was a tough game,” he said. “Arlington’s a great team, they’re ranked fourth in state and I give them all the kudos. And we (would have) had to play our best game to beat them.”
Rasmussen also wondered why prep teams weren’t allowed to participate in organized practices prior to the resumption of games this week following snow-day school closures.
“I’m not making excuses but I’m just saying it’s tough for my team when you haven’t played since the (previous) Friday,” Rasmussen said. “Six days we haven’t touched a ball, been in the gym practicing … how do you contend with that against a team of that caliber? It’s pretty tough. We went for a half but we ran out of gas. They’re a great team and we couldn’t keep up with them.”
“I don’t know why we sit out six (days) then are forced to play,” Rasmussen continued. “I mean, why isn’t (it) we get to come back to school and at least get one practice in?”
Following Thursday’s loss, the Warriors will be back on the court Friday, Jan. 18 — not for a practice but for another game. E-W will travel to Marysville-Getchell for a 7:15 p.m. date with the Chargers.
In other Edmonds-Woodway sports Thursday, the Warriors’ boys swim team lost to the Shorecrest Scots 91-79 in a meet held at the Lynnwood Pool.
Prep Girls Basketball: Arlington at Edmonds-Woodway, Jan. 16
Arlington 15 8 21 16 — 60
Edmonds-Woodway 12 9 6 7 — 34
Edmonds-Woodway individual scoring: Jadyn Waram 12, Brooke Kearney 8, AJ Martineau 5, Kaddy Kongira 4, Maddie McMahon 3, Sydney Chappell 2, Mia Dickenson, Halle Waram, Lilly Frunk, Hazel Mills
Arlington individual scoring: Keira Marsh 15, Jenna Villa 11, Hailey Hiatt 8, Mckenzie Gage 8, Hannah Rork 6, Allison DeBerry 4, Sierra Scheppele 3, Josie Stupey 3, Ella Strittmatter 2, Abbey Hassing
Records: Edmonds-Woodway 5-1 in 2A/3A Wesco League, 7-5 overall; Arlington 5-1 in 2A/3A Wesco League, 9-2 overall
Edmonds-Woodway next game: versus Marysville-Getchell; Friday, Jan. 17; 7:15 p.m. at Marysville-Getchell High School
Prep Boys Basketball: Shorecrest at Edmonds-Woodway, Jan. 16
Shorecrest 91 – Edmonds-Woodway 79
Edmonds-Woodway event winners:
— Niko Inadomi in the 50 Yard Freestyle (24.38)
— Anton Teplouhov in the 100 Yard Butterfly (56.06)
— Jeff Plum in the 100 Yard Backstroke (58.02)
— Yuteng Wang in the 100 Yard Breaststroke (1:06.16)
— Anton Teplouhov, Niko Inadomi, Andrew Rutz, Mate’ Pallos in the 100 Yard Freestyle Medley (1:34.23)
— Jeff Plum, Anton Teplouhov, Yuteng Wang, Niko Inadomi in the 200 Yard Medley Relay (1:43.57)
Dual meet records: Edmonds-Woodway
Edmonds-Woodway next meet: versus Mariner; Tuesday, Jan. 21; 3:15 p.m. at Kamiak High School
— By Doug Petrowski
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