Meridian girls pull off stunning comeback, knock off Seattle Academy
Having benefited from “a much-needed 30-point butt kicking” near the end of their league season, as Ellesse FitzGerald honestly put it, Meridian’s girls basketball team wasn’t about to panic over a talented opponent’s 14 baskets in the opening quarter.
The resulting comeback produced one of the most memorable games in the school’s history, perhaps in any sport.
“Crazy, just crazy,” was how Meridian coach Mark Gilmore expressed his feelings.
After being outscored by 14 points in the first quarter, the Trojans (19-7) ironically outscored Seattle Academy (17-4) by 14 points in the last quarter of Meridian’s 78-73 win in a loser-out game in the first round of the Class 1A state regionals Saturday at Mountlake Terrace High.
“That fourth quarter was just surreal,” said fourth-year point guard Ryley Zapien.
WHAT IT MEANS
In another loser-out round Wednesday at 12:15 p.m. at the SunDome in Yakima, the Trojans will face Montesano – a 66-40 loser to Okanogan in a non-elimination regional game – for the right to qualify for the eight-team, double-elimination part of the 1A state tournament. The Trojans are making their first appearance in 13 years.
“I think the (Laurel) community will get excited and take pride in what we’re doing,” Zapien said.
BEST BALANCE
“We definitely had our best balanced game,” said Gilmore, who wasn’t shy about giving what he called “tough love” after the Trojans endured a 77-47 loss to Northwest Conference 2A leader Burlington-Edison Feb. 2.
“Now we’re playing with a chip on our shoulder,” said FitzGerald, who scored 15 of her career-high 25 points in the second half as the Trojans chipped away at deficits of 31-17 after one quarter and 46-39 at halftime. She made her only first-quarter shot but finished 8 for 14 from the field and 7 for 8 from the line.
Zapien broke her nose in the previous game and played with a mask. She finished with 10 points, all in the second half, and seven assists.
Junior guard Kyrin Baklund scored 14 points, with two vital fourth-quarter 3-pointers. Senior post Kiana Gray had 13 points and 12 rebounds and freshman post Jolee Sipma played her best game, considering the stakes, and contributed 10 points, solid defense and helped Gray with the rebounding chores.
“I just knew I had to do my job,” said the rugged Gray when asked her reaction after the first-quarter nightmare. Gray‘s job involved defending the hard-driving likes of 6-foot-2 Machaela Smith (18 points), Allie Morrison (20) and Sarah Goh (19).
Gilmore stressed that solid play by the waves of others he used for substantial minutes on his deep team – MaKenna Holz, Bryn Magnusson, Taran Tutterrow, Emily Stuth, Natalie Swanson and Tanis Harrison – enabled the high scorers to outscore Seattle Academy 26-14 in the fourth quarter.
CRUNCH TIME
Gray’s free throw with 2:33 remaining gave the Trojans their first lead at 68-67.
Seattle’s Goh scored her team’s final six points with three drives, but the Trojans always had an answer. Baklund’s 3, Zapien’s drive and Zapien’s two free throws – after she was knocked hard to the court – put the Trojans ahead 75-73 with 35 seconds left.
Gray rebounded a Seattle miss with 21 seconds left and Fitzgerald made a free throw with 14 seconds to go and converted two more with 7 seconds left for the game’s clinching points.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been involved in a game like that,” said Gilmore, expressing “great pride” in his girls.
This story was originally published February 25, 2017 at 10:10 PM with the headline "Meridian girls pull off stunning comeback, knock off Seattle Academy."