The Pirates girls traveled to Puyallup, where they lost to league foe Cascade Christian, 45 -36.

The game was unusual in many respects. The Pirates managed to hit on fewer than 50 percent of their free throws, going 0 of 8 in the first quarter alone. The Pirates never led in the game, spotting the Cougars to a 13 – 3 lead at the end of the first quarter (the score was 13 – 0 until just before the buzzer).

Undaunted on a night where the shots would just not drop, the Pirates fought back. Trailing by 8 at the half, Vashon fought back to within 3 late in the fourth quarter.

Of note, the Pirates were whistled for 31 team fouls. Senior Chrissy Swope was the first to go fouling out in the first minute of the fourth quarter. Trailing by 3 with about two minutes to play, the pirates watched as Elisa Wendt, Kiki Means and Kelly Costello were sent to the bench in order with five fouls.

Oddly, Vashon finished the game with only four players, after sophomore Charlotte Kehoe left the game with 22 seconds remaining.

“Missed free throws and unforced turnovers were the keys to our unraveling,” said Henry Porter. “Good teams find a way to win when things go awry, and tonight we did not get that done.”

In a game that was the polar opposite of Tuesday’s match, Vashon returned home to take on Orting on Friday night and emerged on top in a dominating performance, winning 62-28. The Pirates led in every statistical category, including 24 steals as a team. Costello paced Vashon’s scoring with 19 points. Swope (12) and Wendt (10) both scored in double figures. Means (8), Cat Amick (8), Sophie Nespor (4) and Kelsey Abella (2) rounded out the Pirate offensive effort. Means contributed eight assists and two blocked shots to lead the Pirates in those categories.

The Pirates controlled the boards on both ends of the court with Swope and Nespor each pulling down six boards.

The Pirate girls play two games this week. On Tuesday they travel to Seattle Christian High School to play the top ranked Warriors. Then on Thursday night they play a non-league game — Auburn Adventist High School at home. Auburn won last year’s contest between the squads.

The JV match begins at 5:30 p.m.; Varsity takes the court at 7 p.m.