OLYMPIA — The rims turned tight on Rochester right when they needed their shots to fall here Thursday afternoon as they fell to Columbia River in a District 4 girls basketball contest at Black Hills High School.
The loss brought the Warriors season to a deflating close after the Chieftains ran away with the game in the fourth quarter for a 68-46 decision.
The elimination game opened up with a high paced first quarter as both squads proved motivated to extend their seasons at least a little while longer. In that initial frame Lexi Jones-Sederberg and Paige Winter paced the Warriors with their respective blitzing ball handling skills and down low post presence that left Rochester trailing just 20-16.
In the second quarter Megan Elkins took over for the Warriors, dropping in six of their nine points with a soft shooting touch. Both Sederberg-Jones and Elkins went into the half with a team-leading nine points but the Warriors still trailed the pesky Chieftain squad 32-25.
In the third quarter a free throw by Elkins brought Rochester within three points at 32-29 with 6:25 remaining but the Warriors would never get any closer. With a six point differential entering the fourth quarter Columbia River scored the first eight points before topping Rochester 23-7 in the frame to put the game away for good.
Columbia River’s offense was powered by Erin Baker’s 22 points, which included 15 points in the first half on five three-pointers. The Chieftains sank just three two-point shots but a dozen three pointers as a team.
“I told the girls where it was kind of like that perfect storm where they shot the lights out and I don’t think I’ve seen a team shoot as well as they have especially from the three,” said Rochester coach Davina Serdahl. “And we struggled offensively, especially getting it in the hole like we usually do.”
Indeed, in the third quarter the Warriors worked hard to get good looks in the paint for their post players but the ball simply refused to fall through the cylinder.
“They weren’t dropping and that’s part of that storm that I’m talking about where we couldn't buy a bucket. The looks were there and we adjusted our defense a little. I just didn’t expect them to shoot as good as they did,” said Serdahl.
Rochester managed just 23 percent shooting from the field on the night while Columbia River looked like they couldn’t miss. The Warriors did manage to hit 14 of 19 free throws to keep the game close as long as they could.
Paige Winter led Rochester with a team-high 15 points and Lexi Jones-Sederberg turned in a double-double with 13 points and 13 rebounds. Megan Elkins added 11 points for the Warriors.
Serdahl noted the her team will shed just one senior heading into next year and insisted that she couldn't’ have had a better group to lead during her first year at the helm.
“We’ve come a long way. I’m super proud of the girls. We were diving after balls and the effort was always there,” Serdahl said. “They are so coachable and they are like a sponge. We play in the toughest league in the state and we just need to learn to play four quarters.”
Rochester finished their season with an overall record of 11-11.
Cougars Squeak Past Beavers
VANCOUVER — Kaylee and Ashley Schow combined for 47 points but it wasn’t enough as Stevenson earned a 61-53 win over Tenino in a 1A District 4 girls basketball tournament semifinal game here on Thursday.
The Beavers will face Castle Rock on Friday at 4:30 p.m. at W.F. West in Chehalis in a loser out game.
Ashley Schow recorded a double-double with 25 points and 12 rebounds. Kaylee Schow tallied 22 points.
Kaitlin Wenz led the Bulldogs with 21 points. Ashley Brannan chipped in 15 points and Katie Rathgeber was also in double figures with 11 points.
Tenino shot 44 percent from the field compared to Stevenson’s 38 percent shooting, but the Beavers went cold in the second half after gaining a 35-27 lead at halftime.
“I think we started to play a little hesitant, especially with foul trouble early,” Tenino coach Brandi Thomas said. “I thought we were doing a good job of attacking and knocking down our free throws. Our shots were going in in the first half.”
Elma defeated Castle Rock 63-16 in the Rockets’ opening game of the District 4 tournament.
