LYNDEN – The Lions girl basketball team hit numerous 3-pointers in the first few minutes of the game, and never looked back as it defeated Nooksack Valley 63-29 on Friday night at the Jake Maberry Gymnasium.
Lynden has been known to start out fast, but the effectiveness against the Pioneers couldn’t have been better.
“We got off to a good start, and we’ve been preaching to the kids about starting fast,” Lynden coach Rob Adams said. “Sometimes they misinterpret that by playing reckless. I thought tonight we started fast, but we played really efficient.”
The Lions’ pressing defense forced multiple turnovers which led to a 23-9 lead after the first quarter. Lynden was also able to share the ball extremely well, always looking for the best shot available.
“We were able to make a good pass that led to another pass that led to a great shot,” Adams said. “Some of our kids are learning that sometimes they have a good shot, but there’s a teammate that has a great shot. I thought that our kids played that way throughout the first half.”
The Lions combined for 12 steals and 10 three-pointers. They were also able to outrebound the Pioneers 41-18. Lynden junior Keylie Hershey led her team with 15 points, six rebounds, four 3-pointers and a block. Junior Livia Tjoelker also had 14 points, six rebounds, three steals and a trio of 3-pointers, while sophomore Riley Anderson chipped in with 10 points of her own.
Nooksack Valley senior Jenna Tenkley led her team with nine points, including a pair of 3-pointers.
The Lions (13-3) will host Lakewood (3-12) on Tuesday night, and the Pioneers will travel to Lynden Christian to take on the Lyncs on Monday night.
Lynden 63, Nooksack Valley 29
NV 9 8 4 8 — 29
LYN 23 13 11 16 — 63
NV: Larsen 4, Moore 1, Galley 4, Galindo 2, Wichers 4, Strong 0, Tenkley 9, Compton 3, Paz 2, Bird 0.
LYN: Holman 2, Tjoelker 14, VanderYacht 2, Doerge 7, Villars 6, Hershey 15, Holleman 4, Bonsen 3, VanderHaak 10.
3-Pointers: NV 2 (Tenkley 2); LYN 10 (Hershey 4, Tjoelker 3, VanderHaak 2, Bonsen). Rebounds: NV 18 (Galley 5); LYN 41 (Holman 6, Tjoelker 6, Hershey 6). Assists: NV N/A; LYN 12 (Holleman 5). Steals: NV N/A; LYN 12 (Tjoelker 3, Villars 3). Blocks: NV N/A; LYN 2 (VanderYacht, Hershey)
