The Woodland Beavers survived a scare as Tumwater overcame an 11-point halftime deficit to nearly take the lead in the second half before the Woodland girls clawed their way with trips to the free throw line en route to a 58-47 win on Friday, Feb. 13.
“We knew it was going to be Helter Skelter, but it was crazy,” Beavers head coach Glen Flanagan said. “I’m not saying we played well, but we weathered the storm. I mean, we hit enough free throws. Obviously, if they’re going to foul you every time, I guess you have to get free throws down. We’ve kind of struggled a little bit, but tonight, we hit our free throws.”
Momentum started to swing Tumwater’s way in the final 30 seconds of the first half. The Thunderbirds closed the deficit by five points. Despite the Beavers still maintaining a double-digit lead after the first half, the momentum stayed with Tumwater until the most crucial minutes of the fourth quarter.
Flanagan wasn’t pleased with the defense allowing the Thunderbirds to reach the basket as many times as they did. But the end result was a relief.
“It’s a win, though,” he said. “Basketball is a weird sport.”
The win sent the Beavers to the 2A District 4 semifinals at Woodland High School on Monday, Feb. 16. Despite the game being in the home gym, the Beavers were not the home team as they faced off against the Evergreen Conference’s No. 1 seed, W.F. West, but results were unavailable at press time. A win clinches a state berth and a trip to the district title game on Saturday, Feb. 21, at 6 p.m. A loss would result in a two-game, no-second-chances battle for the Beavers.
The losers bracket for the Beavers would match them up against the winner of Columbia River versus Washougal, slated to take place out of the area at Centralia High School on Wednesday, Feb. 18, at 7:45 p.m.
Also in the 2A District 4 tournament, the Hockinson Hawks made a brief appearance as the sixth seed, resulting in a 56-41 loss to Tumwater High School on Wednesday, Feb. 11.
The Ridgefield Spudders earned the fourth seed out of the 2A Greater St. Helens League, traveling to W.F. West High School on Friday, Feb. 13, resulting in a 65-34 loss. The Spudders played as the away team in their own gym against Tumwater High School on Monday, Feb. 16, but results were unavailable for the loser out game. A win for the Spudders would advance them to play the loser of Black Hills versus Mark Morris, slated for Wednesday, Feb. 18, at 6 p.m. at Centralia High School.
In 1A, the La Center Wildcats lost 53-26 to Montesano High School on Thursday, Feb. 12. The Wildcats will play at Elma High School on Wednesday, Feb. 18, at 6 p.m. in a loser-out matchup.
