By KLAS STOLPE
Sentinel Staff Writer
The Ketchikan High girls basketball team stopped Thunder Mountain 39-30 in the opening 4A game of the Southeast Region V 2A/3A/4A tournament Tuesday at B.J McGillis Gymnasium.
Ketchikan's Ashley Huffine, center, and Thunder Mountain's Mary Kaye Garcia, left and Mary Neal Garcia, right, battle for a loose ball Tuesday. (Photo by Klas Stolpe)
After a defensive-laden 3-2 first quarter score in favor of the Lady Falcons, Ketchikan opened the second stanza with a basket by senior Ashley Huffine and two free throws by junior Lianne Guevarra for a 6-3 advantage, and never surrendered the lead again.
“People may not know this but that’s our seventh time playing each other; there are no secrets,” Ketchikan coach Kelly Smith said. “Our kids know what they’re doing, they know what we,re doing, it’s just a grind.”
Ketchikan is now 7-0 against Thunder Mountain this season, which Smith said is deceiving.
“They are a very good team,” he said. “The games are always tough. You don’t want the law of averages to put a loss in there.
The toughness continued as neither team scored again until 1:44 remained in the stanza when Thunder Mountain senior Nina Fenumiai hit a pair of free throws to close to 6-5.
Ketchikan answered with a 6-1 run that closed out the first half with the Lady Kings up 12-6.
The teams exchanged baskets to start the third quarter with the Lady Kings’ Huffine stealing for a layup and then hitting from beyond the arch and the Lady Falcons Fenumiai and junior Charlie Lewis hitting in the key and sophomore Mary Neal Garcia striking from distance to bring TMHS to within 17-14.
Ketchikan upped their defensive pressure to close out the quarter on a 15-4 run and a 32-18 advantage with eight minutes to play.
The Lady Falcons closed to 32-22 on baskets by Lewis.
The Lady Kings’ Guevarra answered with a basket for 34 and began to spread the floor to draw fouls.
TMHS’ M.N. Garcia, N. Fenumiai, and sophomore Mary Khaye Garcia closed the gap to 34-29.
Ketchikan began a parade of trips to the free throw line but hit just 5-15 in the stanza.
“It’s crazy, the first half of the season that was like our one sure thing,” Smith said.
“As a team we shot 80 percent – I’ve never had a team that shot 80 percent. And then the last month we have gone the opposite way. It’s so weird with free throws. I have had teams that you never mention it and they shoot well, and teams that work on it every day in practice and they shoot terribly.”
TMHS couldn’t capitalize on the misses however and ran out of time.
Guevarra and Huffine led Ketchikan with 14 points apiece, jr. Nadire Zhuta 7, jr. Madison Rose and fr. Jenae Rhoads 2 each. The Lady Kings were 7-20 from the line.
“This year for us, with the league being so even, and how young we are, any win is a good win for us,” Smith said. “To get a win at the Region tournament when you didn’t play very well offensively is good for the confidence.”
TMHS was led by 14 points from M. N. Garcia. Lewis and N. Fenumiai had 6 apiece, M. K. Garcia and Tzadi Hauck 2 each. The Lady Falcons hit 5-11 from the line.
“We’re keeping our heads up,” TMHS coach Chandler Christensen said. “We want to keep looking forward. These girls are right on the cusp of something awesome. I think if we can just get over this little hump we will beat any team that comes our way. We kind of felt the momentum swing our way but then a couple shots didn’t fall and they hit some free throws down the stretch, so that hurt a little bit. I’m super proud of the way the girls played, I couldn’t ask for any more heart, hustle or anything, so we just have to come ready to play for our season on Thursday. Whoever we get, I think we are going to give them everything we have.”
Ketchikan plays top seeded Juneau-Douglas today at 3 p.m. and Thunder Mountain plays the loser of that game on Thursday at 9:45 a.m. in an elimination game.
2A action begins at 11:30 a.m. today and 3A games begin tomorrow. See the schedule in Sports or online at Sitkasentinel.com.
