Season comes to a close for Vashon girls’ basketball team

Loss to Charles Wright in district playoffs ends season

February 16, 2016 8:00 pm
The girls’ varsity basketball team leaves the court after opening introductions at a recent game.
The girls’ varsity basketball team leaves the court after opening introductions at a recent game.

By JOEL HILLE

For The Beachcomber

The Vashon High School girls’ basketball season ended after the team won its first district playoff game in five years, followed by a defeat in a second playoff game to league rival Charles Wright Academy.

After a tough loss in their final regular season game at Charles Wright on Monday, Feb. 8, the Pirates traveled to Port Townsend on Thursday, Feb. 11, for a playoff game against the Port Townsend Red Hawks of the Olympic League.

The girls began the game somewhat tentatively, playing good defense and making some nice steals early, but not finding their rhythm offensively. The team was down 9-5 at the end of the first quarter. They started the second quarter a little better when junior Eva Anderson nailed a three-pointer off a nice pass from senior Annika Hille, but the Red Hawks also began to hit some shots consistently, and the Pirates were soon down 16-8 with three minutes left in the half. The Pirates finally connected on some shots and climbed back to within two points, but then gave up a three-pointer to the Red Hawks just before the buzzer and were down 23-18 at halftime.

The Pirates came out fired up in the second half with a nice 7-0 run when Anderson made a three-point play; senior Siena Jannetty made a short two-pointer, and Hille made a lay-in to take the lead at 25-23. After the Red Hawks regained the lead yet again, senior Lilly Hennessey provided an offensive spark by making back-to-back two-pointers, which were then followed by back-to-back three-pointers from Jannetty. After the point rally, the Pirates had a 35-28 lead.

In the fourth quarter, Vashon senior Kate Atwell did some impressive work on the boards, fighting for tough rebounds, which resulted in several extra possessions for the Pirates. This allowed the team to run some time off the clock as the girls tried to maintain their lead.

With about two minutes left in the game, Hille hit Jannetty with a pass in the corner, and she nailed another three-pointer to give the Pirates a comfortable 10-point lead. The girls smartly and efficiently passed the ball around during the last few possessions to use up time and were able to come away with a 46-35 victory.

Jannetty led the scoring with 11 points; Anderson had 10; Hille had eight; Hennessey had seven; Atwell and Chloe Kuyper each had four, and Olivia Larson added two. Atwell pulled down eight strong boards while Hille grabbed seven. Jannetty grabbed four, and Hennessey and Anderson each grabbed three.

The win over the Red Hawks meant the Pirates had to travel back to  Tacoma’s Charles Wright last Saturday for the second time in less than a week. The game would be a rematch with the Tarriers.

Although the Pirates had put together a solid victory against the Tarriers at home several weeks ago, they knew this game would be a challenge, as the recent matchup just five days earlier had proven to be a very physical contest.

The girls started the game pretty strong, getting some solid stops on defense and matching  the the Tarriers with early baskets. In the first few minutes, Jannetty made a nice pass to fellow senior Natalie VanDevanter in the key for a short two-pointer, then drilled a three-pointer herself to tie the game at seven about halfway through the first quarter. But after that, the Tarriers went on a 10-0 run to end the quarter with a 17-7 lead.

From then on it was clear that the Tarriers were on their A-game and would not be denied, as they outscored the Pirates quite handily the rest of the way. As the girls played out their final half of basketball as a team and the game got out of reach, there were still a few bright moments.

Senior reserve forward Melanie Stoffer came into the game late, after being unable to compete for several weeks due to injury, and was able to score the last two field goals of the season after nice assists from her teammates. The final score was 61-17.

The Pirates ended the season with an 8-14 record. All the girls were obviously sad to see their season end, and there were a few emotional moments as the clock wound down. But afterward the six seniors celebrated their many years of hard work together, their dedication to the game and the close bond they formed during their high school days on the hardwood.

 

— Joel Hille is the father of a VHS girls’ basketball payer.