The Rainier girls basketball team came from behind to slip past Shelton 45-43 in a non-league tilt in Grays Harbor County Monday night.
Freshman Lexi Beckman had an impressive night with 19 points, but she nor the Mountaineers were an offensive juggernaut from the tip. Rainier trailed 12-1 in the first four minutes, 14-5 after the first quarter and 25-17 at halftime.
The game flipped in the third quarter when Rainier outscored Shelton 13-4 in the third to take a 30-29 advantage into the fourth. Both offenses came to life in a back-and-forth final stanza, but a pair of 3-pointers by Courtney Eckroth, who hadn’t scored until the fourth quarter, proved to be clutch for Rainier.
Shelton’s 43 points were its second-fewest total in a game this season.
“We have been in a lot of close games this season and have struggled to finish on top. It felt good to close one out against a tough Shelton team,” Rainier head coach Jordan Hunt said. “Kinsley Barlow and Marianna Gonzales provided a great spark we needed defensively off the bench. Lexi Beckman had a tough matchup tonight and did a great job staying composed.”
Behind Beckman’s 19, Kaysen Bravo also finished in double digits with 11 points. Eckroth tallied all seven of her points in the fourth quarter, and Alexis Meyers scored six. Gonzales rounded out the scoring with a pair.
Rainier (6-5, 0-1 Central 2B League) returns to league play on Wednesday for a home bout with Onalaska (7-4). The Loggers defeated the Mountaineers 43-36 on Dec. 4 in a non-league game in Onalaska.
