By KLAS STOLPE
Sentinel Staff Writer
No ball was safe if it wasn’t in the Mt. Edgecumbe basket on Thursday night at the Hardwood Classic girls basketball tournament at Anchorage’s Grace Christian High School.
The Lady Braves grabbed 33 rebounds and had 13 steals in a 52-25 road win over the Homer Lady Mariners in their opening game of the eight-team tournament.
“Our defense is improving,” Mt. Edgecumbe coach Kathy Forrester said. “We still need to make some adjustments during games. We need to be focused and alert to where the offense is, and especially the shooters.”
Junior Vernae Ramoth (Ambler) grabbed 7 boards, senior Faith Kameroff (Emmonak) 6, sr. Sanora Bell (Yakutat) 5, senior Leticia Skaflestad (Hoonah) 4, sr. Catherine Sunny (Nightmute) 3, sr Brystel Charlie Kwethulk), jr. Maggie Miller (Nome), and sophomore Autumn Beans (St. Mary’s) 2 apiece, and Lizzy Allen (Dillingham) and Ashlyn Strom (Fort Yukon) 1 each.
Mt. Edgecumbe seniors Faith Kameroff (44), Sanora Bell (30), and Brystel Charlie (24) battle against the Ketchikan Lady Kings last weekend at the B.J. McGillis Gymnasium. The Lady Braves are in the semifinal of the Hardwood Classic at Anchorage’s Grace Christian High School tonight. (Sentinel Photo by Klas Stolpe).
Charlie also led the Lady Braves with five steals and forced six Homer turnovers.
“Brystel is such an incredible defensive specialist,” Forrester said. “She is the girl on the court you pray doesn’t guard you.”
Bell and Kameroff had 3 steals apiece, Sunny 2, Skaflestad and Ramoth 1 each.
Bell began her aggression on the offensive end, scoring twice in the first quarter on strong drives into the key that set the tone for the Lady Braves.
“Sanora is starting to attack the basket with more confidence,” Forrester said.
Bell’s aggression collapsed the defense and opened the outside arch for Sunny, who nailed a deep three and helped Mt. Edgecumbe to a 10-4 first quarter lead.
Beans also capitalized on the rebounding and high screens of Ramoth, Kameroff, Bell, and Skaflestad, scoring three times in the second quarter as the Lady Braves took a 20-7 halftime advantage.
Five different Lady Braves scored in the third stanza with Miller leading the way with 6 points inside and Charlie scoring off a steal and going perfect at the foul line as Mt. Edgecumbe exploded for 17 third quarter points.
“I was pleasantly pleased with how Maggie (Miller) was finishing on the court,” Forrester said. “We were being really aggressive on both ends of the court and that’s something they have worked hard on all season. That and limiting our turnovers. We were really kind of patient on offense, that was a surprise.”
Six Lady Braves scored in their 15-point fourth quarter.
Bell hit six of her seven shots in the game, Allen 2-3, and Miller 3-6 to lead field goal percentages, while went Sunny 1-9, Beans 5-14, and Kameroff 1-7.
“We had decent shots throughout the game,” Forrester said. “The important thing is no body got down if they missed. I am happy to say we are not hesitant to shoot.”
Beans led Mt. Edgecumbe with 12 points, Bell 11, Miller 8, Sunny 7, Ramoth and Kameroff 5 apiece, Allen and skaflestad 2 each. Charlie also had 6 assists and Bell 5.
The Lady Braves hit 9-16 at the charity stripe, the Lady Mariners went 3-8.
Shelly Johnson led Homer with 8 points, Rylee Doughty 5, Hannah Hatfield 4, Laura Inama, Cora Parish, Marina Carroll, and Jess Sonnen 2 each.
Mt. Edgecumbe had a season-low 13 turnovers, another improvement as the region tournament approaches.
Mt. Edgecumbe, now at 9-8 on the season, plays in a semifinal game today against Grace Christian.
