By Kiara Doyal, The Seattle Medium
Eastside Catholic’s Raquel Dunnam and Amy Nduka led the Crusaders to a 19-point victory over the White River Hornets in a girls state 3A basketball quarterfinal matchup.
Crusader Talia Cermak knocked down a three-point shot to get the game underway. With their energy still high, Sophie Lugolobi stole the ball away from the Hornets during their first possession but was unfortunately unable to finish. The Hornets’ Maggee Schmitz then scored a shot off the glass, putting White River on the board for the first time. From there, the pace of the game started to pick up, and while the Crusaders held the lead throughout the first quarter, White River wasn’t too far behind. Schmitz scored 7 first-quarter points, and Crusader Raquel Dunnam hit two three-pointers, one in the final 30 seconds, to give Eastside Catholic an 18-11 lead going into the second quarter.
The Crusaders opened the second quarter with a 7-1 run, making the score 27-14 at the 5-minute mark of the quarter.
Dunnam then went on a solo 6-0 run, consisting of back-to-back three-point shots to stretch the Crusaders’ lead to 33-14. In hopes of stopping Dunnam, White River’s Lily Banks scored a smooth basket off the glass, but Dunnam, who scored 17 first-half points, responded immediately with another three-point shot, giving the Crusaders a 20-point advantage. To close out the first half, White River’s Gracie Banks converted one of two shots at the free-throw line as Eastside Catholic went into halftime leading 36-17.
Lugolobi started the second half with a jump shot that pushed the Crusaders’ lead to 38-17, which ignited a 6-0 run as Eastside Catholic built a 23-point lead at 42-17. With three minutes remaining in the third quarter, Maggee Schmitz scored all 9 of White River’s points in the closing minutes, while Nduka poured in 4 points as the Crusaders held a commanding 50-26 lead heading into the final quarter.
The Hornets came out firing to start the final quarter, going on a 5-0 run and chipping away at the Crusaders’ lead. Nduka then traded baskets with Kaijah Young and Schmitz as Eastside Catholic maintained an 18-point lead, 53-35. With a little over two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, Sa’Fine Sampson and Kieren Dhesi combined for 3 points, and the Crusaders checked in their bench players. Despite being on the short end of the scoreboard, the Hornets’ Malia Froemke and Malia Rathburn combined for 5 points, including a three-point shot from Rathburn, and the Crusaders calmly dribbled out the clock to seal their 59-40 victory over the White River Hornets.
Dunnam led the Crusaders with 17 points and 2 rebounds, while Schmitz led the Hornets with 18 points and 4 rebounds.
After the game, Eastside Catholic head coach Darnellia Russell said that their defense brought home the win for her team.
“I think that we came out and our defense is what set the tone, and we also played as a team. So, I think that is what really helped us get this win,” said Russell. “I want to continue to keep turning it up, turning up our defense. I keep telling them that if you play defense, then the offense will come. But we have to stop them [other teams] and can’t let them get buckets.”
