The East Jefferson girls basketball Rivals invaded Vashon Island and vanquished the Pirates last Wednesday.
The victory improved EJ’s record to 5-2, vaulting the …
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The East Jefferson girls basketball Rivals invaded Vashon Island and vanquished the Pirates last Wednesday.
The victory improved EJ’s record to 5-2, vaulting the Rivals into third place in the Nisqually League. The loss sank the Pirates to 2-5 and sixth place in the nine-team conference.
Against Vashon, EJ got off to a relatively slow start and led just 14-7 at halftime.
Challenged by Coach Lorraine Rimson to pick it up, the Rivals responded by dominating the third quarter, outscoring the Pirates 22-5.
EJ maintained control through the fourth quarter to seal a 47-22 win.
Six-foot-one post Penina Vailolo again led the Rivals in scoring with 19 points, and in rebounds, with 15.
“It feels great knowing that I’m contributing to the team,” said Vailolo, a Chimacum sophomore.
Junior point guard Kay Botkin scored six points and two assists in limited minutes because, she explained, “I got into foul trouble early.”
In her place, Botkin said freshman guard Teri Wiley “did a tremendous job bringing the ball up the floor” against the Pirates and proved “strong on the boards with seven rebounds.”
Wiley also scored six points, plundered four steals, and shared the booty by dishing six assists to her teammates.
Last year, the Rivals swept Vashon home and away, but needed overtime to prevail over the Pirates in both contests.
This year’s lopsided win underscores EJ’s continued improvement, but the Rivals remain unsatisfied.
Sophomore guard Dylin Shockley said, “It wasn’t our strongest game. If we want to achieve our goal of going to state, we need to play consistently strong throughout the game, all four quarters.”
Beating Vashon restored some confidence lost the previous Friday when the first-place Bellevue Christian Vikings visited the Rivals in Port Townsend.
EJ fought tenaciously throughout the first half, and Bellevue Christian led just 24-16 at halftime.
However, foul trouble sidelined several Rivals starters in the second half, enabling the undefeated Vikings to run up the score and win 62-24.
Even in defeat, the Rivals remained undaunted.
“Everyone was bringing each other up,” said freshman Breanne Huntingford. “We worked as a team even though we didn’t win.”
Snow postponed last Friday’s scheduled showdown between third-place EJ and second-place Annie Wright (5-1).
