Kamiakin girls punch their ticket to Tacoma

Oumou Toure had the flu Saturday and wasn’t at her best for the Kamiakin Braves in the first half of their Class 3A state regional game against Columbia River.

The 5-foot-10 freshman guard had one point through the first three quarters before exploding for 12 in the fourth to help the Braves punch their ticket to the Tacoma Dome with a 51-35 win over the Chieftains at Richland High School.

“It has been a fantastic journey, and we didn’t want it to end,” Kamiakin coach Lane Schumacher said. “We came up short the last two years, and in heartbreaking fashion. We started off a sluggish tonight too, but we did finally get it done. I’m proud of the girls. They call this a regional state round, but it is not the same until you get to Tacoma, and the girls know it. But know we’re are going, and we’re thrilled.”

For Columbia River (14-12), Saturday’s state regional game was the furthest the team had advanced since 1998.

“They were very quick on offense and defense, and that hurt us several times during the game,” Chieftains coach Carl Click said. “We eventually adjusted to the speed on offense and kept (Toure) from penetrating to the hoop. And their press caused us some trouble. She (Toure) stripped the ball from our kids. Her hands and long arms were tough for us to handle.”

The Braves (14-10) held a 33-23 lead after three quarters, and Toure opened the fourth with a pair of free throws.

Columbia River pulled within 36-30 with a 3 by Erin Baker and a basket by Maddy Kessi, then Toure poured it on.

“She extended, got some nice steals and was getting to the basket and making some nice baskets,” Schumacher said. “She helped us get over that hump. We were starting to let them back in. I think they closed it to six and then she exploded.”

For Toure, it was a matter of feeling better as the game went along.

“I’ve been sick all week and still a little now,” Toure said. “I felt better in the second half, and we played better together and picked up momentum. At first, we needed time to get used to the court, and the fact that this could be our last game.”

The Chieftains contolled the first 5 1/2 minutes of the game, taking a 6-1 lead before Jayden Williams scored to make it 6-3.

Columbia River led 11-8 after the first quarter and 16-13 in the second before back-to-back buckets by Alexa Hazel and Symone Brown gave the Braves their first lead, 17-16 with 3 minutes to play in the half. Kamiakin never trailed again.

“We were playing with ‘deer in the headlights’ there early in the first quarter, then we got a feel for the game,” Schumacher said. “Then we actually started making some shots, and we got some transition baskets.”

Kamiakin held Columbia River to 12 points over the second and third quarters as the Chieftains couldn’t buy a basket.

“Welcome to our season,” Click said. “We are not the greatest shooters.”

Hazel finished with a game-high 14 points for the Braves, while Toure had 13. Kamiakin will find out Sunday its draw for the 3A portion of the Hardwood Classic that starts Thursday in Tacoma.

Madddy Kessi and Teaghan Cowles each eight points for Columbia River. Kamiakin kept 6-4 post Emma Fisk in check with just six points.

“We did a nice job collapsing around her and she didn’t kill us on the boards,” Schumacher said. “We did a decent job of blocking out. We didn’t want her to get loose.”

This story was originally published February 27, 2016 at 10:21 PM with the headline "Kamiakin girls punch their ticket to Tacoma."