State regional roundup: Touchet girls fall short against Sunnyside Christian

In her last chance to earn a trip to the Class 1B Hardwood Classic, Touchet High School senior Cierra Jo McKeown scored 32 points, including 15 in the fourth quarter, but it wasn’t enough to get her team to the final eight in Spokane.

Katelyn Banks poured in 39 points for Sunnyside Christian as the Knights held off the Indians 74-66 in a 1B state regional game Saturday at Richland High School.

“We talked all week that this would be a battle,” SSC coach Al Smeenk said. “They have some great ballplayers. We felt we had the height advantage inside, and we were going to use that until they took it away.”

Smeenk, in his 34th season with the Knights (24-0), is taking his team to state for the 21st time.

McKeown, who is headed to Walla Walla Community College, admitted that the Knights’ size inside was a problem.

“We needed to work harder on shutting down their post,” McKeown said of trying to contain the 6-foot Banks. “We practiced against that, but she worked around us. Our goal was to go to state. It’s sad that this is my last game.”

The Indians (18-5), who trailed 35-30 at halftime, never backed down from the No. 2-ranked Knights.

Sunnyside Christian had a 12-point lead with 1:17 remaining in the third quarter, but back-to-back 3-pointers by Caitlin McGreevy and McKeown cut SSC’s lead to six — 53-47.

“I’m happy with how we played,” Touchet coach Malissa McKeown said. “Not one time did they quit. They kept putting out a 110 percent effort.”

The battle continued during the fourth, in which a pair of early free throws by Cierra Jo McKeown cut the Knights’ lead to 53-49.

SSC led by 10 points three times in the fourth quarter, but 10 points by McKeown in the final 2:25 kept the game close.

Touchet trailed 70-66 with 47 seconds remaining after McKeown drained a 3, but four free throws in the closing seconds by Banks sealed the win.

“We made them work for everything they got, but we had a hard time shutting down the inside,” coach McKeown said. “It’s always hard to lose your last game when it’s that close. I just hate losing.”

Tied at 14 after the first quarter, the Knights opened the second with a basket by Banks, only to see McKeown knock down a long-range 3 and a jumper in the key for a 19-16 lead just 57 seconds into the action.

With 1:08 to go before the half, SSC had a 33-27 lead, and McKeown was on the bench with three fouls. Katie Skramstad took over for Touchet, dropping a 3 from the right side of the arc to make it 33-30.

Banks added two free throws down the stretch for a 35-30 Knights lead at the half.

Banks finished the game 13-for-19 from the free-throw line.

Skramstad added 13 points for the seventh-ranked Indians, while McGreevy had 10.

4A girls

LEWIS & CLARK GIRLS 70, SUNNYSIDE 46: Emilee Maldonado scored 22 points, but the Grizzlies (16-8) lost to the Tigers (19-6) in a state regional game at West Valley High School in Spokane.

Boise State-bound Riley Lupfer had 23 points, and Brooklyn Howlett finished with 20 for Lewis & Clark, which will head to the Tacoma Dome next week.

1A girls

COLUMBIA-BURBANK 53, LAKESIDE (NINE MILE FALLS) 45: Jamie Ellis and Caitlyn Aune each scored 17 points to lead the Coyotes past the Eagles in a state regional game at University High School in Spokane.

Ellis went 13-for-15 from the free-throw line, and Aune hit five 3-pointers for Columbia-Burbank (20-5), which will play in a 1A state quarterfinal Thursday in Yakima.

“We’re thrilled to death,” Columbia-Burbank coach Jay Aune said.

Sienna Swannack had 27 points for Lakeside (19-4).

1A boys

CASHMERE BOYS 63, CONNELL 45: Gabe Tolrud and Brenden Turner combined for 29 points, but the Eagles (19-6) were eliminated with a state regional loss to the Bulldogs (18-5) at Wenatchee High School.

Connell was outscored 43-21 in the second half.

2B boys

MOSSYROCK BOYS 58, DESALES 54: The Irish jumped out to a 22-8 first-quarter lead, but the Vikings roared back, outscoring DeSales 40-22 in the second half to win the 2B state regional game in Chehalis.

Cole Miedema finished with 25 points and 10 rebounds for the Irish (16-10), who were up 32-18 at halftime.

1B boys

SUNNYSIDE CHRISTIAN 50, LUMMI NATION 47: After a slow first half, Luke Wagenaar came alive in the second, scoring 11 of his team-high 14 points to lead the Knights over the Blackhawks in a state regional game at Richland High School.

Sunnyside Christian (21-5) advances to the 1B Hardwood Classic in Spokane. Defending 1B champion Lummi finished its season 17-9.

Lummi had a 17-11 lead after the first quarter, but a scoring slump over the second and third — which netted just 14 points — saw the Blackhawks trailing 35-31 after three quarters.

The Blackhawks led 42-39 with 2:24 left in the game, but the Knights made their free throws to pull ahead. SSC was on top, 48-47, with 10 seconds to play and kept Lummi off the scoreboard to secure the win.

Trazil Lane led the Blackhawks with 18 points — 13 in the first half. Mike Washington added 10.

This story was originally published February 27, 2016 at 4:57 PM with the headline "State regional roundup: Touchet girls fall short against Sunnyside Christian."