There’s no stopping the Rainier High School girls basketball team, which improved to 13-0 with a 71-31 non-league win at home over Raymond-South Bend on Saturday, Jan. 6. The Ravens were a tough opponent, coming off of a 2B state tournament berth last season, but the Mountaineers are in stride with districts weeks away.
Although Rainier led 20-6 through the first quarter, it wasn’t as easy as the score indicated for the team to pull ahead. The Mountaineers failed to make a field goal in the first three minutes and left shooters open on defense.
“I think it’s been a long week. This is our fourth game of the week,” head coach Brandon Eygabroad said of the sluggish start. “I challenge my girls every game to step out on that floor and bring it, but human nature is human nature. I was pleased to see that once we got going, we picked up the intensity.”
Eygabroad said when his team is tired, he reminds them of their overall goal and to not be satisfied with their undefeated stature.
“If we’re not getting better, we’re getting worse and someone else is out there getting better,” he said. “As soon as you get comfortable, someone is ready to kick you off the top.”
The Mountaineers’ specialty is their full-court press defense, which terrorized Ravens’ ball-handlers hoping to cross the halfcourt line. Guards Brooklynn Swenson and Angelica Askey punished the Ravens by pushing the ball down the court for open layups in transition. Their offense benefited from 30 Ravens turnovers, including 20 from Mountaineers steals.
“That’s when we’re at our best is when we force turnovers and create easy stuff in transition,” Eygabroad said.
Askey scorched the net in the first half, scoring 20 of her game-high 25 points in the first 16 minutes. She nailed 10 of her 14 field goal attempts, including 4 of 5 from 3-point range. Haleigh Hanson provided 13 points and eight rebounds, while Swenson flirted with a quadruple-double with 8 points, eight assists, seven steals and seven rebounds.
The Mountaineers get two days off before a blockbuster Central 2B League matchup at Napavine (13-1, 6-0 C2BL) on Tuesday at 7 p.m. The contest pits the only two remaining undefeated teams in league play against each other, and the Mountaineers will look to snap a two-game skid against the Tigers.
“We battled with them last year. It’s gonna be a tough game, going into their place and in their environment,” Eygabroad said of Tuesday’s game. “We just got to play our game. I keep telling the girls that if we can play Rainier basketball, dictate out there on the floor and set the tone early, we’re going to be in a position to win the game at the end.”
