GIRLS PREP BASKETBALL

Elma 67, Centralia 23

Elma came out the gate strong with a 14-0 run and never looked back in its 67-23 home win against Centralia on Wednesday night.

Elma (4-0 overall) racked up 29 steals in the contest using a high-pressure defense that has become a staple for the Eagles early this season.

Quin Mikel, who scored 12 points and was one of four players in double figures for the Eagles, said the transition game looked as good as it had all season.

Elma’s Quin Mikel hits a layup against Centralia on Wednesday. Mikel put up 12 points in Elma’s 67-23 win. (Hasani Grayson | Grays Harbor News Group)

“We’ve been getting a lot of steals but we haven’t converted them into points all of the time,” she said. “Tonight we converted them so it worked out really well for us tonight.”

Centralia (0-3) looked to come out aggressive with a full-court press of its own, but the Eagles had success breaking the full-court press and hitting the open player to jump start the transition game. Kali Rambo found success running the floor and finishing at the rim and finished the night with 12 points.

The Tigers switched to a half court man-to-man defense and the Eagles continued to find success moving the ball to guards who were cutting to the lane for layups. Elma ran its half-court offense for most of the second quarter and came away with 15 points in the frame for a 38-16 lead at the half.

Elma head coach Lisa Johnson said she liked how under control her team was.

“We want to play up tempo, but it’s about keeping it under control. I think we did a really good job of doing that tonight instead of throwing it crazily around the gym.”

Elma also won the rebound battle 42-27 with Jalyn Sackrider grabbing 11. Her six offensive rebounds were a big impact on the scoreboard as she led the team with 15 points.

Elma’s Jalyn Sackrider deals with a triple team in the post during the third quarter against Centralia on Wednesday. Sackrider put up 15 points and grabbed 11 boards in the game. (Hasani Grayson | Grays Harbor News Group)

The Eagles will look to push its the win streak to five games when they take on King’s Way Christian (3-0) in Vancouver on Saturday at 7 p.m.

Mikel said the team has the right amount of confidence heading into Saturday’s game.

“We’re pretty confident and we’re ready for the next game,” she said. “We’re not going to go in too high, thinking we’re better. We’re and we’re going to show up and work hard.”

Centralia 9 7 4 3 — 23

Elma 23 15 15 14 — 67

Top Players: Sackrider (15 pts. 11 rebs.), Mikel (12 pts., 6 stls.), Jillian Bieker (12 pts., 5 stls.), Kali Rambo (12 pts., 6 stls.)

BOYS PREP BASKETBALL

Aberdeen JV 65, Lake Quinault 35

Aberdeen’s junior varsity used its size advantage and overwhelmed Lake Quinault in the paint in its 65-36 win at Sam Benn Gym.

Lake Quinault kept the game close early on and was only down 18-16 after the first quarter, but the Elks had trouble scoring as the game went on.

Angel Baltazar led the way for the Bobcats with 13 points.

Elks head coach Chis Christansen said the game started to get away from his team once Aberdeen started attacking the paint with its post players.

“Their They’re size killed us. Once they figured out that they had that size difference,it was over,” he said.

Lake Quinault’s Thunder Mowitch had a strong overall game in the loss with 15 points and four steals in the game. The Elks will be back on the court on Wednesday on the road against Crescent at 7:15 p.m.

Lake Quinault 16 6 9 5 — 36

Aberdeen JV 18 19 14 14 — 65

Top Players: Aberdeen Baltazar (13 pts.), Romero Sanchez (11 pts.), Jayden Watson (11 pts.); Lake Quinault — Mowitch (15 pts., 3 rebs., 4 stls.), Kalon Neeland (5 rebs., 4 stls.)

PREP BOWLING

Aberdeen 15, Rochester 4

In a close match, Aberdeen won both baker games to earn a 15-4 victory over Rochester on Tuesday at Fairway Lanes in Centralia.

Illianna Mercado-George had the high series for the match (384 pins) for a Bobcats team that scored 1,668 pins — both new school records.

With the contest tied at 3-3 after the first game, Rochester won three mateches in the second game, but Aberdeen won the pin total 666-542.

The match would come down to the final two baker games. The Bobcats won both, scoring 181 in the first game — a school record for most pins in a baker game — and 139 in the second game to Rochester’s 109 and 105, repsectively.

“Before the match we discussed that the Baker games might make all the difference today and emphasized the need for focus on them,” Aberdeen head coach Dave Bruncke said. “In the second game we stretched out the lead to 8-4 and really put it away in the Bakers. Losing the two Bakers would have tied it up. The 15-4 score looks pretty dominating and the Bakers were the key.”

Aberdeen (6-2, 4-2 Evergreen 2A) will face Montesano at 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday at Rainier Lanes.

Aberdeen (15) — Illianna Mercado-George (184, 164, 348), Bryerlee Perry (123, 174, 297), Kaitlynn Martin (139, 106, 243), Annabelle Micheau (117, 126, 243), , Meghan Howell (100, 115, 215).

Rochester (3) — Amerika Jones (117, 143, 260), Thaila Phothisat (137, 119, 256), Emily Homes Pickernell (128, 115, 243), Sarah Soderback (122, 116, 238), Luz Martinez (7,3 97, 170).