“Emily Pierce sank four free throws in the final 17 seconds as the Spartans defeated sixth-ranked White River 58-54 and qualify as the #1 seed from District 3 for the 3A State tournament, which begins Wednesday at the Tacoma Dome. The Spartans were down by 12 points with less than five minutes to play but Pierce and Fab Rezayat powered the comeback. Rezayat drained a three-pointer with 50 seconds remaining to tie the score 54-54 as she scored 11 of her career-high18 points in the final five minutes. Pierce had 19 points to lead all scorers, while Alice Russell had 10 points and three blocked shots to celebrate her 15th birthday.Christine Schwager added eight and Morgan Zajonc chipped in three.The girls’ basketball team will open 3A tournament play at 10:30 Wednesday morning against Seattle’s Rainier Beach (19-8) at the Tacoma Dome. If they win, they will play the winner of Blanchet (23-3) and Aberdeen (19-4) Thursday at 3:30. If they lose to Rainier Beach, they will play the loser of the Blanchet-Aberdeen game at 9 a.m. on Thursday. To view the complete bracket with records and gametimes, see www.wiaa.com. “
“Many of the Bainbridge faithful who made the long drive to Pacific Lutheran University Tuesday, for the first-round girls’ basketball playoff game against Franklin Pierce, were squirming as the first quarter ended. The Spartans had gone scoreless for the final four minutes, and an 8-0 lead turned into a 9-8 deficit on a Cardinal hoop with 10 seconds left.But Courtney Kimball opened the second quarter with a trey, and the Spartans never trailed again en route to a 56-30 thumping. “
“Stephanie Hylen got off to an excellent start at Friday’s 3A WIAA Gymnastics Championships, scoring 9.0 on floor and 8.6 on vault. But uncharacteristic errors dropped her scores in bars (7.325) and beam (7.75) from levels she’d maintained for most of the season and she finished with an all-around score of 32.675.Senior Melissa Borgen, the only other Spartan entrant, scored a 7.95 in the vault. My hand slipped a little on the bars, but I don’t dwell on it, Hylen said. Part of gymnastics is presentation. “
Jeff Christensen closed out his Spartan swimming career by breaking the school record in the 100-yard butterfly.His new mark led Bainbridge to 72 points and an 11th place finish in the 3A Washington State Swimming and Diving Championships Friday and Saturday at the King County Aquatic Center.
” Mike Roe placed sixth in Mat Classic XIII, and only a questionable referee’s decision prevented teammate Brandon Nall from at least equaling that feat.Roe scored a pair of overtime wins in his first two matches on Friday, before losing a technical fall Saturday morning to the eventual champion in his 145-pound division. “
Jeff Christensen set a new school record in the 100-yard butterfly at the 2A/3A Washington State Swimming and Diving Championships as the Spartans scored 72 points overall.
“GoAnimal has been on Bainbridge for just over two years. Its roots have existed since man emerged on the plains and valleys of Africa many millennia ago.GoAnimal is the brainchild of 45-year-old Frank Forencich, who converted an old woodshed on his property into a secret training facility so he can teach the physical education you should have gotten. It’s been replaced by sports and learning the rules of games. An obviously fit man, Forencich is the embodiment of the physical part. A longtime self-described climbing bum, he’s scaled numerous peaks in the Northwest and Canada. He’s ascended El Capitan, the sheer-sided symbol of Yosemite National Park, a few times. He has a black belt in karate and aikido.And education? He holds a degree in human biology from Stanford, a teaching credential and a massage certificate and has also been a flight instructor. He just returned from a month-long trip to Africa which he says taught him a great deal and is eager to pass along his new-found knowledge.So what is he trying to teach? “
“Coach Penny Gienger couldn’t have scripted Friday night’s game at Central Kitsap any better as her girls’ basketball team prepared for post-season play.Her team had been outplayed and outscored during the third quarter and trailed by three. Add a partisan Cougar crowd and a talented Cougar team that desperately wanted a victory and the scenario was complete.The Spartans responded. Keyed by six Emily Pierce points, Bainbridge went on a 9-2 run to open the fourth quarter and take a 54-50 lead, then held on for a hard-fought 58-55 win and a share of the Olympic League championship.It was a great, district-like game, Gienger said. Both teams played really well. Their crowd was wild and loud, and ours was the same, which helped. “
“The Spartan girls defeated Port Townsend on Tuesday, 59-39, in what coach Penny Gienger called a great game.Our defense was really tough, Gienger said, and Christine (Schwager) played well on their best player.The game also marked junior guard Fab Rezayat’s return to full health after several weeks battling the flu. She scored 11 points, dished out six assists, and had an eye-popping one-handed bounce pass that somehow threaded its way through three Redskins to set up an easy shot. “
“Trailing after three events, the Spartan swimmers rode the momentum of Jeff Christensen’s personal best 22.55 in the 50 free to a 381-363 victory over Lakes and their first district title in three years. Coupled with Andrew Sperling’s third place and Jon Rochelle’s 11th, the Spartans outscored Lakes 30-9 in the event to open up a 14-point lead and doubled the margin after nine events.Lakes closed to within 12 points two events later, but Bainbridge won the closing 400 free relay. Virtually the entire team was clustered at the end of the pool to urge on Erik Steinecker as he maintained a two-body-length lead.Christensen took just one breath in the 50, at about 35 yards, as he recorded his second automatic state qualifying time in the event in less than 24 hours. “
“Brandon Nall and Mike Roe both placed third in last Saturday’s Olympic/Pierce County League wrestling tournament to advance to this Saturday’s regionals in Ellensburg.Jacob Hayashi was the only other Spartan to place, finishing sixth. With three wrestlers absent due to illness or injury and no heavyweight entry, the Spartans finished ninth among the 10 teams. “
“Boys’ basketball coach Jeff Eller tells his players it’s important to be playing their best ball in February.Nick Thompson couldn’t wait.The senior co-captain scored 11 points in the first quarter to spark the Spartans to a 65-51 win over visiting Bremerton on Tuesday, lifting Bainbridge into sole possession of third place in the Olympic League.Though he scored just two more points the rest of the way to finish with a game-high 13, Thompson set the tone for the rest of the team by concentrating on the hoops equivalent of the Mariners’ Small Ball.Rebounding. Passing the ball around and working the clock. Lots of other things that don’t show up on stat sheets but help win games.It was a methodical, business-like effort, Eller said. Our guys were all very unselfish, and it was a classic team game. We did all the things a playoff team needs to do.And it wasn’t just Thompson. Playing perhaps their best quarter of team basketball and supplementing Thompson’s output, the Spartans jumped off to a 22-12 first quarter lead. Bremerton never got closer than eight points the rest of the way. “
“Because of a game-day problem, some of the Port Angeles High School gymnasium lights were at their usual brightness Friday evening, while others were noticeably dimmer. One basket was bathed in intense light, while the other sat almost in shadow, and other parts of the court had different degrees of illumination.The lighting served as a symbol for the game itself, as the Roughriders played with an incandescent attitude in downing the Spartan girls’ basketball team, 62-45.With the support of a nearly full house, Port Angeles worked their offense effectively while a tight defense never let the Spartans get into any kind of a rhythm. “
