By JOEL SCHOENBERG

For The Beachcomber

Vashon High School’s varsity boys’ basketball team won two more games this past week, posting a 6-0 record in the Nisqually League and a 15-3 record overall for the 2015-2016 season thus far. Victims of the Pirates’ plunders were Seattle Christian on Tuesday night and Bellevue Christian on Friday. The Pirate boys now wait until Friday, Feb. 5, to play rival Cascade Christian at Vashon in a game that could determine the regular season winner and the number one seed for the playoffs, which start Feb. 11.

Seattle Christian

The first quarter of Tuesday’s game against Seattle Christian started with defense and speed from Vashon’s five senior starters, who pressured the Warriors into giving up the ball. With the Warriors’ senior center, Taggart Anderson, out of this game for undisclosed reasons, the Pirates were able to pass the ball low to Alex Symbol and Sam Yates with ease.

The Warriors, however, adjusted well to Taggart’s absence and were able to keep it close by penetrating with quick lay-ups. The first period ended with Vashon leading 12-6.

At the beginning of the second quarter, Vashon’s Yates launched a long three-pointer that bounced high and true and dropped right through the middle of the basket. It foreshadowed other friendly bounces gracing Vashon’s shots that led to a big halftime lead for Vashon, 29-13.

The second half started well for the Pirates with a steal on the initial in-bound pass and a contested three-point baseline basket from Yates. But Seattle Christian refused to give up, and senior guard Ryan Gifford was able to sneak through Vashon’s zone defense for a few baskets himself.

Later in the half, Vashon’s Symbol continued to showcase his quickness in the post and his clean jump shooting, making several baskets in a row for the Pirates. Seattle Christian’s junior forward Dalton Saggau countered and sank two threepoint shots in a row, but it was simply not enough. Vashon’s dominance of the middle on rebounds and excellent shooting brought the victory for the Pirates, 59-45.

Bellevue Christian

The Vashon boys’ basketball team made the trip to Clyde Hill to face the Bellevue Christian Vikings on Friday, Jan. 29. The game started 40 minutes late due to the exciting overtime victory from the Pirates’ junior varsity boys’ team. By the end of the night, Vashon would not be denied as they streaked to their sixth straight win this season.

The contest started out with each team having difficulty finding the bottom of the basket, but plenty of shots fell from rebounds. Fortunately, Vashon’s Symbol was able to control the rebounds against Bellevue Christian’s standout senior center, Joe Lampkin.

Meanwhile on offense, Yates scored with a beautiful, floating one-handed shot that slowly arced over Lampkin’s outstretched hand. The shot fell right into the basket for two and brought the many travelling Vashon fans to their feet.

Symbol and Sam Schoenberg teamed up for seven three-point shots that were deflating to the Vikings’ defense and forced Bellevue Christian to play catchup the entire game. In the latter part of the second half, Viking senior guard Gage Gutman was assigned to shut down Vashon’s key players, slowing down the scoring attack, but ultimately proving insufficient.

Gutman’s performance was a bright spot for the home team. He scored multiple three-pointers that kept the spirit of the Christian private school team high. The Vikings were hosting the Pirates for the last time this season.

Ultimately, even with Gutman’s spirit-boosting play, it was not enough. The game ended 55-40 with Vashon extending its league unbeaten streak to 18 straight games spread over the last three seasons.

The boys will ride the victories into Friday’s home court showdown with rival Cascade Christian. With an early 5:30 p.m. tip-off at Vashon High School, Friday’s game will feature the top two teams in the Nisqually division and will likely determine the seeding for the district championships. It is also “Senior Night” and will showcase the five starting seniors that have been playing together since they were kids: Edgar Polkat, Schoenberg, Symbol, Yates, Sean Delargy and Josh Tillman.

— Joel Schoenberg is the father of a VHS boys’ basketball player.