HOCKINSON – The Hockinson girls basketball team finally got off to a good start Wednesday, and it led to a perfect ending for the Hawks.
Kylie Ritter scored 17 points, including a huge 3-pointer late, and Gracie Brammer and Ellie Ritter added 16 points each as the Hawks knocked off Washougal 58-53 in a 2A Greater St. Helens League game.
“We’ve had some past games when we’ve struggled with our starts, but we figured out something that really works for us as a team,” Ellie Ritter said. “So we’ve been implementing that into our pre-game, focusing more on taking time to focus on preparing for the game mentally. So coming out, it’s really made a difference the past two games. And obviously that start was so crucial to the win.”
Brammer hit two 3-pointers in the first quarter and another in the second as Hockinson took a 32-27 lead into halftime.
But in the second half, the Panthers came out hot, scoring nine straight points to go up 36-32.
“We kept saying we can’t let up,” Brammer said. “We can’t get in our heads. We have to just act like it’s 0-0, and it’s a fresh start. … It doesn’t matter what the score is, we just have to keep playing with everything we got.”
The Hawks rallied back, and the game remained tight into the fourth quarter when Ellie Ritter hit a 3-pointer to put Hockinson up 47-46.
Brammer followed with another 3-pointer, then Kylie Ritter’s 3-pointer with two minutes left proved to be the dagger, giving the Hawks a 55-48 advantage.
“I just kept saying every timeout, end of each quarter ‘Win this quarter, win the game. Win this quarter, win the game,” Kylie Ritter said. “Because we had that little bit of a lead at one point, and I was like ‘win this quarter, win the game.’ And we took care of business.”
It was the Hawks’ second straight win over Washougal, including last season’s overtime thriller in the league playoffs.
“Really, I feel like their kind of our rivals,” Kylie Ritter said. “It’s always been a battle. A lot of the girls have played against them since middle school, since a young age. Now we’re all seniors, and they have a lot of seniors, too, so we were ready to play. We got that good win last year, so we really wanted to feed off that. And we came out with the energy to do it.”
Savea Mansfield had 19 points to lead Washougal, and Jaiden Bea added 12. The two teams are set to meet again Monday in Washougal in a game that could determine second place in the 2A GSHL.
For Hockinson seniors, the win capped an exciting day. Wednesday morning, the Ritter sisters were part of a college signing ceremony at Hockinson. Ellie signed to play soccer at Northwest Nazarene, and Kylie signed to play basketball at George Fox.
“It was picture perfect,” Ellie Ritter said . “Everything perfect that could happen did.”
HOCKINSON 58, WASHOUGAL 53
WASHOUGAL (13-3, 10-2) — Chloe Johnson 7, Savea Mansfield 19, Bella Albaugh 3, Samantha Mederos 1, Hadley Jones 0, Jaiden Bea 12, Carissa De La Rocha 9, Jaisa Wilson 4. Totals 18 (4) 13-21 53.
HOCKINSON (11-6, 9-3) — Allie Seekins 2, Addie Chappelle 5, Gracie Brammer 16, Delaney Chappelle, Siena Brown 0, Kylie Ritter 17, Cordy Plymale 2, Ellie Ritter 16, Lauren Schadt 0. Totals 22 (8) 6-13 58.
Washougal 16 11 16 10—53
Hockinson 20 12 12 14—58
