Noah Edmonds scored 14 points and grabbed seven rebounds to lead the Pirates to an easy win over Sultan, 57-30 on Dec. 19. The Pirates virtually controlled both the offensive and defensive boards, frequently giving them multiple opportunities after a missed shot.
The Tuesday afternoon victory against Sultan evened the score after a home loss to the Turks last year. Sultan is in the 1A Cascade conference north of Seattle.
This game saw the taller Pirate starters patiently pass the ball around the perimeter looking for the open man inside, often finding Edmonds. He usually managed to snare the ball in the crowded paint for a turnaround jump shot or found himself at the charity stripe, where he made six of nine shots. When there was little opportunity inside, Mike Piatti hit on three of seven shots from beyond the three-point line, and Colin Pottinger hit on three of five shots from the perimeter, helping the Pirates to another 40 percent shooting performance.
Despite the familiar venue, the Turks had serious trouble getting the basketball to go through the hoop. One reason for this was that the Pirate defensive front did not allow penetration. And, in any given Sultan possession, Vashon only allowed one shot. The first half ended with a 25-16 Vashon lead, and that was the best Sultan would do.
The third quarter started with both teams trading baskets, until Piatti buried a three from deep, and both Edmonds and Tommy Delargy burst inside for layins to stretch the lead to 42-24 to end the period.
Scoring for Vashon was the following: Edmonds 14, Piatti 11, Delargy 7, Pottinger 7, Ethan Danielsen 6, Jacob Chavez 5, Jahmiah Hoogen 5 and Sam Briggs 2.
The junior varsity boys fell 51-24.
Two days later, the Pirates went on to defeat Port Townsend at home.
Edmonds took the ball directly to the hoop and finished strong on his first three possessions, and the same was true for Delargy as speed was the name of the game early Thursday night. Vashon met the Redhawks in a non-league match with early scoring and raced to a 20-2 first quarter lead. On the first possession, Edmonds tore ahead of his defender and floated to the hoop and banked the ball in for two points. The Pirates punished Port Townsend with steals that led to converted baskets, while the Redhawks could not find the bottom of the net.
In the second quarter, the Redhawks found some footing, as senior Kaiden Parcher began to hit from a variety of locations on the court. The Redhawks scored nine unanswered points to claw their way back into the game, until Delargy buried a three from the deep right corner, and Hoogen added another three to end the half with a 27-11 lead for Vashon.
The third quarter was like the first, as Vashon dominated the boards and deftly moved the ball offensively to find openings that led to baskets. The Pirates shot 44 percent from the field and 91 percent from the free throw line, in a 53-26 victory that was never in doubt.
Scoring for the Pirates were the following: Hoogen 15, Edmonds 14, Delargy 10, Mike Piatti 6, Pottinger 4, Chavez 2 and JJ Bogaard 2. Parcher had 12 points for Port Townsend.
In the earlier game, the Vashon junior varsity breezed by the Redhawk juniors 39-24. Edgar Hernandez dominated the game with 15 points and 8 rebounds.
— Daniel Briggs is the father of a Pirate basketball player.
