Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Gorillas beat Broncos after loss to Liberty
Davenport eighth-grader Emalie Jacoby gets into the open court against Lind-Ritzville/Sprague. The Gorillas eliminated the Broncos with a 62-37 victory in the District 7 2B playoffs Wednesday, Feb. 8.
SPOKANE VALLEY - After pushing the favored Liberty Lancers to overtime Monday, the Davenport girls team decided to keep its season alive in a big way against the Lind-Ritzville/Sprague Broncos in the District 7 2B Tournament at West Valley High School Wednesday, Feb. 8.
Eighth-grader Emalie Jacoby came out of the chutes firing darts against the Lancers Feb. 6. Her seven first-quarter points helped the Gorillas take a 14-11 lead.
Jacoby wasn't finished yet, hitting a three-pointer at the halftime buzzer to bring her first half total to 17 points and give Davenport a 32-25 halftime lead. Senior Ellie Denny kept Liberty lingering with 10 points of her own.
The Lancers trimmed the deficit to four by the end of the third quarter, setting up an exciting finish. Liberty came all the way back, before Denny drilled a three-pointer to give her team a 49-47 lead with 43 seconds left in regulation.
But Davenport freshman Clare Lathrop, who contributed 16 points off the bench, got good post position and converted a layup with 12 seconds left to send the game to overtime.
In the extra four minutes, Denny was a bit too much for Davenport to handle, and the Lancers held off the Gorillas 60-57 to advance to the district semifinals. The Gorillas were sent to the loser-out round.
"We tried hard. We just didn't make the ones we needed to make," Davenport head coach Stacia Soliday said. "I think this probably will be a confidence (boost because) we lost to them by so much the first time and this was a big improvement."
Davenport was determined to not let its season end against the Broncos. After a relatively slow start, the Gorillas applied a sharp full court press that allowed them to go on a 14-0 run and take a 23-10 lead into the second quarter.
That second period was a turnover-infested, sluggish affair on both sides, and Davenport led 30-18 at intermission.
The Gorillas kept up the defensive pressure in the third quarter, expanding its lead to 47-25 by the end of the third quarter and 62-37 by the final buzzer.
"We went back to trying to switch a zone press when we made a basket and man-to-man when we missed," Soliday said. "I took a risk because I think it throws the other team off sometimes."
Davenport was led in scoring by Jacoby, who had 15 points and seven rebounds after notching 21 points two days earlier against Liberty.
"(We've been) having a lot of energy and keeping a positive attitude in the locker room," Jacoby said. "Just figuring out what the defense is and being smart on our passes."
Lathrop added 14 points and eight rebounds against LRS, while freshman Addie Schneider had eight points and six boards off the bench.
Freshman Zoe Galbreath led LRS with 11 points and eight rebounds.
Davenport eliminated the Broncos in the win and take on Upper Columbia Academy at 3:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 9. The winner heads to the 3rd/4th place game, while the loser will compete in the 5th/6th place matchup Saturday, Feb. 11 at West Valley.
Drew Lawson is the editor of the Davenport Times. He is a graduate of Eastern Washington University.
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