Rainier girls basketball coach Jordan Hunt has been waiting to see his squad put together a full four-quarter effort this season.
Thursday’s Central 2B League matchup against Morton-White Pass was a strong step in that direction. The Mountaineers jumped out to a double-digit lead early against Morton-White Pass and never looked back in a 66-52 victory.
The Timberwolves showed some fight in the second half, responding with 23 points in the third and 18 in the fourth after putting up just 11 in the first half and trailing 30-11 at halftime. But Rainier’s balanced scoring attack, led by 16 from Lexi Beckman and 15 from Kaysen Bravo, proved to be enough.
“Some nights we look like a second-half team. Tonight, we came out of the gates ready. That’s growth,” Hunt said. “What excites me most is knowing we’re close to putting it together for four full quarters. You can almost feel it building. When it clicks, this group can compete with anyone.”
Beckman got rolling in the first half with 10 points, while Marianna Gonzales provided a boost in the starting lineup with six points. Both offenses lit up the scoreboard in the third quarter, with Malia coming alive with 10 points in the frame following just two in the first half. Ryelin Wiedenmann also scored eight points in the third.
But a couple of Bravo triples late in the quarter kept Rainier up by 20 heading to the fourth. MWP knocked down three 3-pointers in the fourth and outscored the Mountaineers 18-12, but
the first-half lead was too much for the Timberwolves to surmount.
“Both squads learned a lot tonight and grew from it. That’s what games like this are about,” Hunt said. “You can’t sleep on anyone in the Central 2B. There are a lot of teams in this league that deserve a state bid.”
Rainier (7-8, 1-3 Central 2B League) earns its first league win of the season and will host the three-time reigning 1B champion Neah Bay on Saturday.
MWP (11-6, 1-3 C2BL) welcomes Onalaska (9-5, 2-1 C2BL) to White Pass on Tuesday, Jan. 27.
