By Oly Archibald
BAINBRIDGE — The Port Angeles boys basketball team faced seventh-ranked Bainbridge last night on the road, and while the Roughriders came up short in a 61–46 loss, they showed why they’ll be a team to reckon with in the upcoming district tournament.
Bainbridge led by 17 at halftime, 37–20, but Port Angeles made a strong push late in the third quarter and cut the deficit to eight early in the fourth. The bigger, faster Spartans answered with a 9–0 run to stretch the lead back to 17 and put the game away.
Senior Brody Pierce led the Roughriders with 13 points. Fellow senior Hunter Flores knocked down three three-pointers to finish with 12. Junior Jon Ruddell attacked the paint and went a perfect 6-for-6 at the free-throw line, scoring eight points. Junior Abe Brenkman added eight points with solid play on both ends of the floor. Daniel Benoit hit a three, and Ashton Gedelman added two points.
Bainbridge sophomore Ryan Rohrbacher scored 12 points, well below his season average.
The Roughriders will host Olympic Friday night.
Abe Brenkman (left) and Hunter Flores (right) are interviewed on the KONP Newsradio postgame show with Kylar McCaslin and Joe Gladfelter.
On the girls side, Port Angeles held on for its second win over Bainbridge this season, defeating the Spartans 53–46. With just four league games remaining, the Roughriders appear to have clinched the league championship.
Port Angeles is expected to be a double-digit favorite the rest of the way through league play and into the district tournament, where a rematch with Bainbridge is anticipated in the district championship game at Bainbridge.
Teanna Clark led the Roughriders with 19 points. Lindsay Smith added 16, Morgan Politika stayed hot with nine, London Bourland scored four, Kenzie Moses hit a three, and Becca Manson added two.
The Roughriders travel to Olympic Friday night, and you can hear that game on KONP Newsradio.
Roughrider senior Teanna Clark scored 19 points in Port Angeles’ 53–46 win over Bainbridge. Clark and the Roughriders are eyeing another chance to cut down the nets against the Spartans in the district championship.
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In swimming action today, Port Angeles is at Kingston, while Sequim competes at North Kitsap. Both meets begin at 3:30.
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In NWAC basketball, the Peninsula Pirates women moved up one spot to number four in the latest conference rankings.
The Pirates have a doubleheader tonight at Everett. You can hear both games on KONP Newsradio, with the men tipping off at 5:00 and the women at 7:00.
