DES MOINES — Highline’s pressure defense was just too much for the Lady Blazers here Wednesday night — but Centralia didn’t do much to help itself in a 62-43 NWAACC West Division women’s basketball loss.
“I think we missed 10 layups on the night, and that doesn’t help. When you miss 10 easy shots inside, that’s at least 20 points,” Centralia coach Shane Schutz said. “Then, from the free throw line, we didn’t shoot particularly well, and then we had 29 turnovers.”
Centralia trailed by 14 at halftime, and gave up 35 points off of turnovers in the contest.
On the bright side, however, the Lady Blazers did harass Highline into a 2 of 15 night shooting from behind the arc.
“I thought our halfcourt defense, for the most part, was pretty good,” Schutz said. “But you can’t turn the ball over 29 times. It gives the other team easy baskets, and I think that wore on us.”
Bethany Elliott had 11 points and 11 rebounds, and Kaylee Hartman had 10 points and seven boards for Centralia.
The Blazers (3-12, 3-5 league) play at Clark on Wednesday.
Note: Centralia was 6 of 14 from the free-throw line, while Highline shot 8-25. ... The teams combined to shoot 3-23 from the 3-point line. Kelsey Stone hit the only triple she attempted for Centralia, which missed its other seven attempts. ... Jocelyn Jones led Highline with 19 points on 8-13 shooting from the field. ... Hartman had four steals in the game, and Samantha Gordon dished off four assists for Centralia.
