Conference rival edge Wasilla girls for tourney title

WASILLA — Some coaches try to avoid seeing a conference rival in a nonconference tournament, but Wasilla head coach Jeannie Hebert-Truax wasn’t fixated on the fact her team faced Soldotna, a Northern Lights Conference rival, during the final day of the Doc Larson’s Roundball Classic at Wasilla High.

“My philosophy is if you’re going to get better, you’ve got to play the top teams. I think Soldotna is one of the top 5, 6 teams in the state right now,” she said after SoHi’s 57-51 win over the Warriors Saturday.

Wasilla and SoHi, which meet Saturday at WHS during the first weekend of NLC play, both took major hits by graduation. The Warriors graduated five senior starters from a team that captured a third straight 4A state title. Soldotna lost three starters to graduation.

Soldotna’s top three returning veterans — Katelynn Kerkvliet, Kelci Benson and Julie Litchfield — all scored in double digits, and Kekvliet pulled down a game-high 15 rebounds to lead the Stars to the tourney win.

Kerkvliet, the most valuable player of the four-team round-robin tournament, scored nine of her 11 points during the first half. Benson and Litchfield, both all-tourney selections, combined for 27 second-half points.

Benson and Litchfield also helped Soldotna put together a key six-point run at the end of the half. SoHi trailed 24-18 during the final moments, before the run. Litchfield went to the basket during the rally. She also grabbed a steal at the defensive end to set up a fast break basket for Benson.

“We had a few turnovers,” Hebert-Truax said.

But beyond the turnovers, the longtime Warrior mentor noted the opportunities her team allowed Soldotna to have.

“We gave them way too many open shots, in my opinion,” Hebert-Truax said. “We let them get to the basket.”

Soldotna shot 50 percent from the field in the second half, and Benson and Litchfield led Soldotna during its big fourth quarter. Benson hit three timely three-pointers during the fourth. Litchfield, who finished 10 of 17 from the floor, scored eight points in the fourth.

Two of her three-pointers turned a one-point deficit into a five-point advantage. With the Stars trailing by one, Benson buried a three to give Soldotna the 40-38 lead. Moments later, Benson knocked down another shot from beyond the arc to push her team’s lead to 43-38.

Benson’s third three-pointer of the fourth also gave Soldotna a five-point lead. Wasilla’s Catherine Baham cut SoHi’s advantage to 47-45, and Benson followed with a three-pointer to give her team a 50-45 lead.

After losing the five senior starters, the Warriors have welcomed in a new cast of talent. Ten different players hit the court Saturday against Soldotna. Hebert-Truax played 14 players during a lopsided win over Galena on Friday.

Of the 10 who played Saturday, four were freshmen. One freshman, McKenna Dinkel started and had 24 minutes of playing time. Baham, another freshman, was on the floor for nearly 17 minutes. Senior Shayla Johnson hit six three-pointers and led Soldotna with 18 points. Senior Amanda Hutchins added six points, four rebounds and three assists for Wasilla. Johnson and Hutchins were both named all-tournament.

Archbishop Spalding of Severn, Md., won the boys title of the 2014 tourney. The Cavaliers capped a perfect weekend with a 79-46 win over the host Warrior boys. Archbishop Spalding, which also scored lopsided wins over East and Lathrop, was led by Gary Jefferson’s 23 points.

Senior Cash McGregor led the Warriors with 11 points and 14 rebounds. Cameron Brown added 10 and Mosiah Rank chipped in nine for WHS.

Soldotna girls 57, Wasilla 51

Doc Larson’s Roundball Classic

Saturday, Wasilla High

Soldotna 10-16-11-20—57

Wasilla 14-10-14-13—51

Soldotna (57) — Benson 5 5-6 18, Litchfield 10 4-7 24, Wong 1 0-0 2, Hendrick 0 1-2 1, Kerkvliet 4 3-5 11, Miller 0 1-2 1; Totals: 20 14-22 57.

Wasilla (51) — Heath 1 0-1 2, Johnson 6 0-0 18, Baham 3 1-2 8, Toews 2 0-0 4, Hutchins 3 0-0 6, Dinkel 2 3-4 7, Edwards 3 0-0 6; Totals: 20 4-7 51.

3-point field goals: Soldotna 3 (Benson 3), Wasilla 7 (Johnson 6); Total fouls: Soldotna 14, Wasilla 20.

Archbishop boys 79, Wasilla 46

Doc Larson’s Roundball Classic

Saturday, Wasilla High

Archbishop 25-25-20-9—79

Wasilla 8-12-13-13—46

Archbishop (79) — Harris 3 3-5 9, Dalce 0 1-2 1, Grant 7 0-2 18, Ashbeck 3 0-0 9, Jefferson 7 7-7 23, King 1 0-0 2, Seaggs 1 0-0 2, Kane 3 1-2 8, McGinty 3 1-2 7; Totals: 28 13-20 79.

Wasilla (46) — Lee 1 0-0 2, Brown 4 0-0 10, Krueger 1 0-0 2, Baham 1 0-0 2, McGregor 5 1-4 11, Houck 0 2-2 2, Rank 4 1-2 9, Horton 1 0-0 3, Tresham 1 0-0 3; Totals: 18 6-13 46.

3-point field goals: Archbishop 10 (Grant 4), Wasilla 4 (Brown 3); Total fouls: Archbishop 16, Wasilla 16.