Sydney Weber didn’t waste time rating the Prairie’s defensive performance to open the 3A bi-district girls basketball tournament Wednesday night.
“This is a 10,” the junior reserve guard said. “Maybe a nine or a 10.”
What’s scary is it might only get better from here, said Weber, who finished with five points off the bench in a reserve role in the Falcons’ 66-19 bi-district opening-round win over Bonney Lake at Prairie High School.
Because the way the defense played Wednesday night, watch out.
“This is just the start,” she said, “and it’s just going to get better.”
The Falcons had 10 of their 14 steals on their way to forcing a 40-point running clock when it reached a 52-11 lead with 4 minutes, 38 seconds left in the third quarter on two free throws by Cassidy Gardner.
Brooke Walling led Prairie with 19 points and Gardner finished with 18 in a victory that sends the Falcons (19-2) to 7:45 p.m. Friday’s bi-district quarterfinals against Timberline of Lacey at Tacoma’s Bellarmine Prep.
But the reserves, such as Weber, got plenty of meaningful minutes, thanks to dominant defensive effort. Prairie’s 10 first-half steals helped them build a 37-8 halftime lead and to push its winning streak to 14 in a row with the win. It held Bonney Lake (4-17) without a second-half field goal, and the trend only continued in the third quarter.
Prairie used a 13-3 run over a stretch of 4:09 to make it a 52-11 advantage and initiate a 40-point running clock. At one point, Bonney Lake was 4 of 38 shooting when it trailed 61-13 in the fourth.
For Weber, a junior, she’s embracing her role as a reliable 3-pointer shooter off the bench. She missed most of last season after suffering a knee injury in club soccer.
“It’s good knowing I can do everything (again) and go 100 percent,” she said. “I’ve taken every game, taken it game by game, because I’ll never know if I’ll get hurt again.”
She finished with five points Wednesday, one of six Falcons to hit a 3-pointer. Six-foot post Lauren Vreeken added seven points.
PRAIRIE 66, BONNEY LAKE 19
BL 5 3 5 6 – 19
Pra 18 19 22 7 – 66
Bonney Lake — Raelyn Kimmel 0, Jessica Day 0, Olivia Grob 0, Payton Schelin 3, Jordann Hofstrand 2, Malea Loukides 2, Maisyn Jensen 3, Alexis Brooks 9, Abby Frame 0. Totals 6 (3) 4-6 19
Prairie — Meri Dunford 3, Allison Dorral 4, Sydney Weber 5, Brooke Walling 19, Mallory Williams 8, Averie Martinez 2, Cassidy Gardner 18, Claire Heitschmidt 0, Haley Reed 0, Lauren Vreeken 7. Totals 21 (6) 15-20 66
