LC girls seek 12th straight trip to Yakima with win in 1A regional
Lynden Christian vs. Charles Wright
8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 26, at Mount Vernon High School
Charles Wright Tarriers (15-6)
Enrollment: 218.0
League: Nisqually (second)
District: West Central (second)
State appearances: 5 (1-10)
State titles: None
Coach: Kate Rue
Leading scorers
Player | Pos. | Yr. | Ht. | PPG |
Shoni Pritchett | G | Sr. | 5-7 | 18.2 |
Majestic Moler | G | Sr. | 5-8 | 13.3 |
Naomi Pikes | G | Fr. | 5-6 | 4.4 |
Lola Oyetuga | P | Sr. | 5-7 | 4.0 |
Kaia Valentine | W | Sr. | 5-5 | 3.7 |
Scouting the Tarriers: Charles Wright advanced to the district title game and clinched its first trip to state since 2005, before falling 48-37 to Bellevue Christian in the district title game. Moler provides a nice second scoring option to Pritchett and is averaging 4.2 steals per game.
Key to the game: The Tarriers are at an obvious size disadvantage with only one player taller than 5-8, so they need to hope their guards can keep Lynden Christian from working the ball inside.
Player to watch: In addition to leading the team in scoring, Pritchett is averaging 9.2 rebounds per game. She’ll need to have a big game for CWA to have any hope.
Lynden Christian Lyncs (21-2)
Enrollment: 251.0
League: Northwest Conference (tied for first)
District: Northwest/SeaKing (first)
State appearances: 35 (104-32)
State titles: 10 (1979, 1980, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2008, 2014)
Coach: Brady Bomber
Leading scorers
Player | Pos. | Yr. | Ht. | PPG |
Kara Bajema | F | Sr. | 6-2 | 14.7 |
Sam Van Loo | P | So. | 6-1 | 10.8 |
Haley Hollander | G | Sr. | 5-10 | 8.4 |
Avery Dykstra | G | So. | 5-9 | 7.2 |
Isabela Hernandez | F | Fr. | 6-0 | 6.6 |
Scouting the Lyncs: LC’s only losses this season came against 4A Snohomish and 2A Lynden, and it breezed through the district tournament and to a bi-district title. The Lyncs were the top-ranked team in the final 1A poll, and they have a number of players capable of scoring in double figures.
Key to the game: The Lyncs have good size inside with Bajema and Van Loo. If they can take advantage of that, they’ll likely head to Yakima for a 12th straight year.
Player to watch: Bajema is headed to UW to play volleyball, but she has the basketball skills that also probably could have earned her a scholarship.
Herald prediction
Charles Wright’s only state playoff win came in 1998, and it’s unlikely the Tarriers will add a second against the Lyncs.
LYNDEN CHRISTIAN 61-48
This story was originally published February 25, 2016 at 3:45 PM with the headline "LC girls seek 12th straight trip to Yakima with win in 1A regional."