The Glacier Bears girls went undefeated at last weekend’s invitational hoops tournament, defeating their opponents by at least 20 points each game.
The Lady Bears kicked off the tournament with a 35-point win over Minto. The ladies started the game with a corner three from junior MacKenzy Dryden. They then caused a Minto turnover, followed by an up-and-under post move from senior Sadie Anderson.
Minto scored their first points of the game with two minutes left in the first quarter. The Lady Bears led 31-9 going into halftime.
There was no scoring for the first three minutes of the third quarter. Minto broke this dry spell with a deep three. Junior Alison Benda responded by forcing a foul and sinking both of her free throws. The Lady Bears won the game 59-24.
Haines’ win over Minto allowed them to advance to take on Effie Kokrine Charter School, which they tromped by more than 40 points.
The Lady Bears then took on Fort Yukon and kicked off the fourth quarter with a 10-foot jumper from freshman Emma Dorhn. Fort Yukon began applying full-court pressure with five minutes left in the game. Haines was able to break the press every inbound. The Lady Bears won 55-33.
With a 3-0 record, the Lady Bears advanced to the championship game. They faced Fort Yukon for the second time.
Anderson won the tip-off, but Haines couldn’t handle the ball. Fort Yukon drove down the court but dribbled out of bounds. Haines set up a play that resulted in a missed corner jumper from junior Grace Long-Godinez. Neither team was able to connect at the rim until Fort Yukon sank a three in the corner with five minutes left in the quarter.
Anderson responded by drawing a foul. She made the first free throw but missed the second. Benda secured the offensive rebound and passed to Anderson at the top of the key. Anderson found Godinez-Long inside for an easy two points. The Lady Bears led 8-3 at the end of the first quarter.
The girls made seven straight points in the first two minutes of the second quarter. Fort Yukon then called a timeout to attempt to shut Haines down. Freshman Ar’iel Godinez-Long was unfazed by the timeout and drove the length of the court for a fast-break layup. Haines outscored Fort Yukon 17-3 in the second quarter.
The girls kicked off the third quarter with a fast break from Dryden. Dryden could not finish at the rim, but Anderson was there to get the offensive rebound and put back. The Lady Bears scored eight straight points before Fort Yukon was able to respond.
The Lady Bears dominated the third quarter with fast-break layups from Benda and Dryden. They led 50-11 going into the fourth quarter.
Dorhn kicked off the fourth quarter with a 10-foot jumper. Junior Malia Jorgenson-Geise was then fouled and made one of her free throws. Fort Yukon made their first points of the quarter with three minutes left in the game. The Lady Bears defeated Fort Yukon 57-14 to win the championship game.
Anderson won the free-throw contest for both girls and boys after making nine out of ten free throws. Dryden won the three-pointer contest after making ten three-pointers in one minute. Anderson and Benda both received all-tournament awards for their performances.
“I think I won the free throw contest because we do ten minutes of free-throw shooting every day at practice,” said Anderson. “I also think that Alison (Benda) definitely deserved all-tourney.”
“I was honored and surprised to be named all-tournament player,” said Benda. “I think that everyone on our team worked equally hard and that they deserve the same recognition.”
The Lady Bears will be facing the Metlakatla Chiefs at home Feb. 25-26. Senior night for the basketball players, cheerleaders, and pep band will also be held before the second games.
Anderson said winning the Tok tournament has given the girls more confidence for their next conference games. “I think it was really great of Lynzee to get us to this tournament because it gave us a lot of games to prepare us for the Metlakatla games,” said Anderson. “It was also a lot of fun to get to see the freshmen play and see what they’re capable of.”