Albeit in blowout victories, the Rainier High School girls basketball team’s offense had a tendency to start hot and then trail off. That inconsistency eventually bit the Mountaineers in their Dec. 7 loss to Clarkston in which they scored just 39 points.
Since then, their offense has sizzled, and they put forth their most consistent offensive effort yet in a 64-30 thumping of Tumwater Tuesday, Dec. 17 for their third straight win. Senior Brooklynn Swenson led the way with 18 points, including 13 in the second half, while fellow veterans Janess Blackburn and Angelica Askey contributed 17 and 15, respectively.
“We moved the ball, we pushed it in transition, and we got some easy buckets early. From there, we just played off each other, and we were unselfish and feeding the ball in the post,” Rainier head coach Brandon Eygabroad said.
As a team, Rainier scored a season-high 64 points, its most in a game since last year’s 2B District 4 quarterfinals when the Mountaineers scored 70 against Raymond-South Bend. It also marks their third straight game scoring more than 60 after failing to hit that mark in any of their first three games.
Rainier was in control against the T-Birds from the tip as Lexi Beckman’s tap fell right into Blackburn’s waiting arms, and she scored the game’s first points with a runaway layup just four seconds in. One minute later, Tumwater needed a 30-second timeout following a pair of Rainier baskets off T-Birds turnovers. Rainier forced four takeaways in the opening quarter and capitalized on three of them with transition field goals.
Askey lit up Tumwater in the first quarter, dropping 10 points and a pair of 3-pointers to help the Mountaineers to a 20-6 lead through the first eight minutes.
Blackburn took over in the second, using post moves and a soft touch to score inside. She used her impressive leaping ability, often displayed on the volleyball court in the fall, to snatch rebounds on both ends.
“It’s just something that we’ve been emphasizing over and over again, whether it’s crashing the boards on the offensive glass or finding bodies on defense. It’s one of our points of emphasis that we know that we have to clean up,” Eygabroad said of the team’s rebounding. “We always want to dominate the glass. We think it’s one of the keys to success, and I was happy with our outing today.”
Askey canned her third triple of the night in the waning seconds of the first half, and Rainier led 33-14 at halftime. But, in Eygabroad’s perspective, 14 points allowed was too many.
“I gave them a goal to hold them to 10 points in the second half. Don’t let off the gas. The only way we’re gonna get better is if we play hard and we play our game, and they came out in the third quarter and did so.”
The Mountaineers defense, without forcing a bunch of turnovers, suffocated the T-Birds in the third quarter. It started with wearing them down on offense with rapid ball movement and offensive rebounds, and Tumwater could only muster one field goal and two free throws in the frame. Rainier’s lead ballooned to 51-18 heading into the final quarter, with Swenson outscoring Tumwater 7-4 by herself.
The senior point guard added her third and fourth treys of the night in the fourth quarter to finish with 18 points. Swenson took what the defense gave her and led the offense effectively.
“What I like about Brooklynn is that she’s going to do whatever the team needs [of] her to win,” Eygabroad said. “If we can get all 10 varsity girls to have that mentality, it’s really hard to beat a team. Whether it’s going in and crashing the boards, getting in the passing lanes and getting steals, or when she needs to hit a big shot, she’s ready for that.”
Eygabroad inserted sophomore Kinsley Barlow and freshman Alexis Myers into the game for some key reps in the fourth quarter, and Myers stepped up with a free-throw line jumper that excited the bench and the home crowd. The shot was her second of her varsity career and first on her home court.
“I’m seeing good things on the JV team from both of them,” Eygabroad said of the underclassmen. “I liked what I saw [tonight]. They came in and they were settled. They didn’t do anything too crazy. Lexi was open, and she’s always ready to shoot and she knocked down a big shot. I’m really happy for her.”
Myers was one of six Mountaineers in the scoring column Tuesday night. Along with the combined 50 from Swenson, Blackburn, and Askey, Lexi Beckman scored seven points and Kaysen Bravo added five.
Tumwater senior guard Sydney Sumrok led the T-Birds in scoring with 11, and sophomore Anden Demaris pitched in with six points.
Rainier (5-1) will hit the road this weekend for a big test against Central Washington League powerhouses Brewster and Okanogan. Brewster was a 2B state quarterfinalist last year before falling to eventual state champion Napavine, which defeated Okanogan in the title game.
The Mountaineers will face Brewster at Brewster High School Friday, Dec. 20 with tipoff scheduled for 7:30 p.m. and follow it up with a 1:30 p.m. contest against Okanogan Saturday, Dec. 21 at Brewster.
Three of Tumwater’s (2-4) four losses have come to Central 2B League teams, and the T-Birds will get one more shot to beat a C2BL team when they visit Adna at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 18.