Warrior girls first at Latta

The Washington girls basketball team won the Latta basketball tournament last Saturday.

They defeated Crowder (57-22), Lindsay (65-44) and Comanche (60-45) to claim the title.

Head coach Kale Simon likes the effort his team played with in the tournament.

“The thing that is making us successful right now is our aggression as a team,” he said. “The girls are creating chances for themselves with the ball while willing to make the extra pass and the right play. They’re sharing the ball and playing as a unit on both ends.”

Washington got out to a quick lead against Crowder and led 20-6 after the first quarter.

They only allowed two points in the second quarter and four in the third on the way to a 35-point victory.

“We set a tone on defense and it allowed us to be successful,” Simon said.

Rielyn Scheffe led all scorers with 18 points.

Preslee Johnson scored 16 and Kelby Beller had 14 to join Scheffe in double figures.

Lindsay

They again started off fast in the semifinals against Lindsay, blowing the game open with a 20-5 opening quarter.

They kept a commanding lead throughout the game and came away with the 21-point win.

Washington was very balanced offensively with five girls in double figures.

Kyndall Wells and Johnson led the team with 13 points each.

Breanna Lindert scored 12, Scheffe had 11 and Beller had 10 points.

“We’re in attack mode,” Simon said. “Our mind set is good and it has allowed us to be successful.”

Comanche

Washington’s hot start philosophy worked so well the first two games they figured it must be a winning recipe.

Their 20-8 first quarter was just that and they closed out the Indians with a 15 point win to secure the tournament championship.

“I was really proud of them,” Simon said.

Scheffe had the hot hand offensively with 23 points, followed by Beller (12) and Lindert (10).

It was a solid start to the season, which now stands at 5-0.

Despite the strong start, the coach said they have more  to work on as the season progresses.

“We’re working daily on creating good habit – championship habits,” Simon said. “I want them doing the right thing within our system and we’re working to do that all the time.”

Boys

Coach Trevor Smith’s boys defeated Kiowa (67-37) and Latta (44-41) before falling to Lindsay (55-36) in the finals.

“The day of the finals was a weird day with us going to the football (championship) game and then immediately left straight for Latta,” Smith said. “Lindsay is a really good team and I’m not taking anything away from them.”

Washington bell cows Hayden Hicks and Cash Andrews led the Warriors over the weekend and were both named to the all-tournament team.

Hicks averaged 15.7 points over the three games and Andrews averaged nine.

Latta

The Warriors’ three-point win over Class 2A No. 9 Latta was not as close as the final appeared.

“We had a 10-point lead going in to the fourth quarter but they were hitting shots late.

“Overall I was pleased with the tournament,” Smith said. “You always want to win at least two games in a tournament.”

Washington is 3-3 this season.