by MARTY ZIER

Sports contributor

The Lady Vikings advanced past the first round of the Northwest 2B Basketball Tournament at LaConner High School defeating the Darrington Loggers, 49-44 on Feb. 12.

The Vikings hit the hoop quick, leading the first quarter 14-3 with tight defense denying the Loggers any consistent scoring underneath.

But Darrington stepped back their offense behind the black line and began hitting three-pointers narrowing the lead 21-19 at half.

The Loggers’ impressive perimeter shooting kept the game close as the Vikings, despite sharp passing, had trouble finishing their easy shots in the paint. The game remained close after the third quarter 37-32.

The Vikings finished the game strong and deflected late game Logger pressure despite Hannah Gaydos fouling out in the fourth quarter. A few key steals from Bella Nigretto helped seal the win.

Head Coach Gregg Sasan was pleased with his team’s composure in the fourth quarter and the crisp passing resulting in only 10 Viking turnovers for the entire game.

Orcas scoring was led by Nigretto with 17, Gaydos 11, Kilee Rogers 9, Shelbi Rogers 7 and Alicia Susol with 5.

The Vikings play the LaConner Braves in the next round today. The outcome will determine if they go to bi-districts as first or second in the league.

by JACK RUSSILLO

High School Senior

The boys made the same trek on Feb. 12, playing their first playoff game in the Northwest 2B Tournament against the Concrete Lions in LaConner and lost 57-63.

The Vikings got off to a good start getting multiple baskets off of Lion turnovers. Entering the second quarter up by 3, the Vikings started to slow down and defensively allowed a game-high 21 points in the second quarter. Orcas only scored 11 points to finish the quarter and trailed 25-31 at halftime.

The Vikings’ struggles continued into the second half with only 9 points in the third quarter. Down 44-34 in the fourth, the Vikings sparked as the island boys hit 5 3-pointers in the quarter and got to within 2 points late in the game. However, fouls and easy layups for the Lions were the downfall of the Vikings.

“I think we did pretty good today. There’s still room for improvement,” said assistant coach David Kimple. “We played some tough defense and hustled. We lost a close game that we definitely could have won.”

Orcas scoring was lead by Jack Gates with 21, Jack Russillo 11, Pasha Bullock 10, Miles Harlow 8, Aidan Kruze 4, and Jordan Randolph 3.

The boys will play their second game in the play-offs on Feb. 15 at 3:30 p.m. in the high school gym.