The Tumwater High School girls basketball team defeated cross town rival Black Hills High School 42-21 Friday, January 6 at A. G. West Black Hills. The game was a double header with the girls varsity teams playing first followed by the boys varsity teams (THS Boys 66-48 over BHHS).
Tumwater (9-3, 5-0 2A EVCO) took the lead early and battled to a close 11-7 lead after the first quarter. Black Hills (3-6, 1-4 2A EVCO) was led by six points from junior Ava Klovas. Tumwater pulled away in the third period, expanding their lead to 33-14. Tumwater saw strong play from junior shooting guard Regan Brewer (10 points), freshman Rhylee Beebe (12 points, two 3-pointers), and senior guard Cierra Larson (10 points).
Tumwater head coach Nathan Buchheit loved the double header schedule and the community buzz that came with both varsity teams competing at the same venue. “The atmosphere was so fun and It was great to see what we did in the second half,” Buchheit stated. “Our confidence increased after we started shooting better. I think defensively we are tough to play against and that is where it starts for us.”
Black Hills will look to continue to grow moving forward at the midpoint of the season. Head coach Herb Guscott liked the battle his team put forth. “My girls played hard and it showed with the tight halftime score,” Guscott remarked after the game. “Unfortunately, we just have six student athletes and eventually fatigue plays a factor for us, but give Tumwater credit, they played tremendous defense and are very well coached.”
Tumwater hosts WF West Chehalis Tuesday in 2A EVCO league play and Black Hills hosts North Thurston Monday and Centralia Tuesday.
T-Bird head coach Bucheit also noted he is looking forward to the second part of the season. “Moving forward, our priority is on ourselves,” he stated. “How can we continue to improve from a good to great defensive team? Can we stay disciplined and do the little things right for a full game? Those are a few of our challenges. We are looking forward to these next couple of weeks!”
