By Micheal Rios, Tulalip News
The Tulalip Heritage girls basketball team hosted the Shoreline Christian Chargers at Francy J. Sheldon gymnasium on December 11. Prior to tip-off, head coach Katia Brown and assistant coach Deandra Grant shared what the girls have been working on in practice.
“We’ve mostly been doing a lot of repetition in practice. Running through our primary plays over and over again,” said coach Katia. “When our offensive, defensive, and out of bounds plays become second nature, then it won’t matter as much which five girls are on the court, they’ll all be able to execute. The other point of emphasis for us is getting back in transition. We want all our girls to be running back on defense and to give full effort on the defensive end. Because at the end of the day, defense is all about effort.”
“We’ve also been working with our freshman, Madison Sheldon, to let her know that she’s more than capable of being a strong ballhandling option for us,” added assistant coach Deandra. “She’s young and quick to second guess herself. When, really, she already has the talent and drive to produce in a big way.”
The points both coaches spoke of become evident against Shoreline in the early going. First, the Lady Hawks defense was down right stifling. They helped each other, communicated and rotated well, and were routinely hustling to get back on D in transition. Meanwhile, the offense was flowing. Guard Aylani Lewis found big sister Raylee down low for a layup and on the next play, kicked it out to Madison who splashed a 3-pointer. Up 5-0, the Lady Hawks would never look back as they held a 12-4 lead entering the 2nd quarter.
Aylani called her own number to begin the 2nd quarter when she made back-to-back 3-pointers to put her team up 18-4. The defense continued to harass Shoreline ballhandlers and force turnover after turnover. It was routine to see Lady Hawks lay out to secure loose and deflected balls, which ignited Heritage’s fast break opportunities. After Madison hit her second 3-pointer of the game, she assisted her big sister Lilly Jefferson a couple possessions later for a 15-foot jumper. The Lady Hawks led 26-4 when Shoreline got their only points of the quarter from the free-throw line. The girls took a commanding 26-6 lead into halftime.
The dominance continued in the 2nd half. The Heritage coaches, true to their word, put their trust in their girls to execute the offense without lead guard Aylani on the floor. As she sat for an extended rest, Madison and Lilly took the reigns and made the most of their opportunity. Lilly caught fire from the floor and wasn’t shy to show off her mid-range game that she worked on over the offseason. She made six 2nd half baskets, and on one of her few misses, sophomore forward Janiesha Fryberg was there to corral the offensive board and score a bucket.
Ultimately, the Lady Hawks team effort resulted in a 54-15 rout of Shoreline Christian. Aylani scored a game high 16 points, Lilly added 15 points, and both Raylee and Madison chipped in 9 points. It’s worth noting that the Lady Hawks defense was so on point that they didn’t give up a single bucket to Shoreline in the 2nd or 4th quarters. Lockdown.
After the game, sisters Madison and Lilly offered their perspective on the impressive W.
“Our team adapted quickly to what Shoreline was trying to do on both ends of the court tonight,” said senior forward Lilly. “Our chemistry is so much better than last year and keeps getting better every game. I’m just glad to be playing on this team, especially now that my sister is on the team.”
Her sister, Madison, is only 14-years-old. She’s been watching Heritage basketball for as long as she can remember. Going from spectator to secondary ballhandler and opportune sharp shooter is something she’s quite literally waited her entire life for.
“It feels so great to be Lady Hawk!” beamed Madison, the heritage freshman. “I get to play with my sister. I get to be on the court, finally, and I get to grow up being a Lady Hawk.”
The Lady Hawks next home game is an out-of-league matchup with Wapato High School. Game scheduled for 3:30pm on Saturday, December 20, at Marysville Pilchuck.