The Olympia High School boys basketball team hosted Puyallup Thursday, December 8, defeating the visiting Vikings 58-41 in the first 4A SPSL league game for the Bears.
Olympia (2-0, 4A SPSL 1-0) led the entire game getting ahead early and leading 18-8 after the first quarter with strong first half play from sophomore Matt Lindblom and senior Andreas Engholm. Senior Parker Gerrits scored 12 points and the Bears played a well-rounded game with Lindblom contributing 13 points and Engholm 15.
Puyallup (1-3, 4A SPSL 1-2) was led by Isaiah Sonntag who had 14 points for the game.
Olympia Bears head coach John Kiley was happy with the win, but hopes his team grows in its intensity and attacking play moving forward. “I was really pleased with how we came out tonight and I felt like we dictated defensively and created good opportunities on the offensive side of the floor,” Kiley stated after the win. “Puyallup played hard and we didn’t do a great job of consistently attacking in half two, but give credit to them, they kept fighting, and made it hard for us to do what we wanted to do.”
Puyallup head coach Kevin Olson looked to learn lessons and continue to improve moving forward. “I was happy with our effort and it was a good experience for us,” Olson remarked. “We have a very young squad this year and Olympia really has a great physical team with a great crowd here. We got a little swamped there in the first quarter but we will learn from this and it will make us better moving forward.
Puyallup heads to Curtis next Tuesday.
Olympia will host 3A North Thurston (3-1, 3A SSC 1-0) Saturday at 7 p.m. at Chick Rockey Gym. For Kiley, Olympia looks forward to improving. “We have a lot of players back from last year squad and our expectations are high,” he shared. “I love this group. They come to work every day and care a lot about each other.”
