Girls Basketball Season Recap
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With the conclusion of the state finals, the girls' basketball season has now come to an end. Coming into this season, things were looking promising as this year marked the introduction of Jayda Lewis, Imbie Jones, Malia Samuels, and Katie Fiso to the team. They definitely didn’t disappoint.
Fiso and Samuels led the team with 14.6 and 14.5 points per game respectively. Returners Navaeh Talbert, Jada Walters, Rakiyah Jackson, and Lucille Richardson all played a key role in Garfield’s success. Their first test came on December 1st against a formidable team in Bishop Blanchet. Any notion of doubt about Garfield was wiped away in a 76-37 blowout.
Two days later, the Lady Bulldogs completely annihilated Cleveland with a historic 111-2 win. Their play was ridiculously clean with constant steals and dizzying offensive plays. That combined with a weak offense from Cleveland led to a blowout of epic proportions. Their next test was playing against Eastside Catholic, one of the strongest teams in the league. They didn’t have much trouble and beat them 88-50. This was a sort of homecoming for Malia Samuels and Imbie Jones as they played on Eastside Catholic prior to transferring to Garfield.
Lakeside was their next challenge as they were likely going to be one of Garfield’s biggest competitors. They gave the Lady Bulldogs a challenge, but Garfield was able to win 54-46. On February 2nd, they beat West Seattle 66-36. Prior to this game, Katie Fiso suffered a concussion and could not play. Malia Samuels stepped up and scored a whopping 39 points. A week later, Garfield played them in the first game of the Metro League Championship. They played efficiently and won 75-39. They then played against Lakeside in the Metro League Championship Finals at SPU. The game was awfully close, but the Lady Bulldogs prevailed with a score of 64-57.
Next up for them was the District Championships where they beat Liberty and West Seattle to cruise into the Finals. For the third time, they were set to play Lakeside, and Garfield was ready. Their defense was a lot more effective in stopping the ball and their offensive plays worked. They easily won in a crushing 55-33 win. Next up was regionals. This game would decide their seeding for the State Tournament. They played against Stanwood and picked them apart with a 67-44 win. Unfortunately, during this game, Navaeh Talbert sustained a knee injury that would sideline her for the rest of the season. This was a large blow to the team, but one bright spot through the playoffs was the emergence of Imbie Jones on offense. Her points output doubled from the regular season to the post-season and looked a lot more effective.
Their final test came in the State Tournament. In their first game, they would face off against Lakeside for the fourth time. And like the three other times, they were victorious. They had a few hiccups on offense but inevitably won. In the semifinals, they played a tough Arlington team. They had trouble on defense, especially with rebounds and were down nine going at times in the third quarter. But they rallied in the fourth quarter and won 56-42 as Fiso scored 25 points and Samuels scored 15.
It was now time for the finals. They were to play Lake Washington, a formidable team. They had gone undefeated thus far and they were trying their hardest to keep it that way. It was a defensive battle with neither team scoring over 40 points. There were many points where both sides nearly scored points but couldn’t quite get them. Lake Washington quickly got into foul trouble with two of their players getting four fouls in the first half. Five fouls would have ejected them from the game. Lake Washington was ahead for a large portion of the game, but Garfield was able to rally for the lead in the fourth quarter. Then, disaster struck when the Kangaroos made a few consecutive shots to take the lead. Garfield played clutch with a minute left and got up by one point. With five seconds left on the clock, Lake Washington sprinted down the court and took one last shot, but it fell to the side of the hoop harmlessly and the buzzer rang. Your Garfield Lady Bulldogs are the Washington State Champions!
Fiso and Samuels led the team with 14.6 and 14.5 points per game respectively. Returners Navaeh Talbert, Jada Walters, Rakiyah Jackson, and Lucille Richardson all played a key role in Garfield’s success. Their first test came on December 1st against a formidable team in Bishop Blanchet. Any notion of doubt about Garfield was wiped away in a 76-37 blowout.
Two days later, the Lady Bulldogs completely annihilated Cleveland with a historic 111-2 win. Their play was ridiculously clean with constant steals and dizzying offensive plays. That combined with a weak offense from Cleveland led to a blowout of epic proportions. Their next test was playing against Eastside Catholic, one of the strongest teams in the league. They didn’t have much trouble and beat them 88-50. This was a sort of homecoming for Malia Samuels and Imbie Jones as they played on Eastside Catholic prior to transferring to Garfield.
Lakeside was their next challenge as they were likely going to be one of Garfield’s biggest competitors. They gave the Lady Bulldogs a challenge, but Garfield was able to win 54-46. On February 2nd, they beat West Seattle 66-36. Prior to this game, Katie Fiso suffered a concussion and could not play. Malia Samuels stepped up and scored a whopping 39 points. A week later, Garfield played them in the first game of the Metro League Championship. They played efficiently and won 75-39. They then played against Lakeside in the Metro League Championship Finals at SPU. The game was awfully close, but the Lady Bulldogs prevailed with a score of 64-57.
Next up for them was the District Championships where they beat Liberty and West Seattle to cruise into the Finals. For the third time, they were set to play Lakeside, and Garfield was ready. Their defense was a lot more effective in stopping the ball and their offensive plays worked. They easily won in a crushing 55-33 win. Next up was regionals. This game would decide their seeding for the State Tournament. They played against Stanwood and picked them apart with a 67-44 win. Unfortunately, during this game, Navaeh Talbert sustained a knee injury that would sideline her for the rest of the season. This was a large blow to the team, but one bright spot through the playoffs was the emergence of Imbie Jones on offense. Her points output doubled from the regular season to the post-season and looked a lot more effective.
Their final test came in the State Tournament. In their first game, they would face off against Lakeside for the fourth time. And like the three other times, they were victorious. They had a few hiccups on offense but inevitably won. In the semifinals, they played a tough Arlington team. They had trouble on defense, especially with rebounds and were down nine going at times in the third quarter. But they rallied in the fourth quarter and won 56-42 as Fiso scored 25 points and Samuels scored 15.
It was now time for the finals. They were to play Lake Washington, a formidable team. They had gone undefeated thus far and they were trying their hardest to keep it that way. It was a defensive battle with neither team scoring over 40 points. There were many points where both sides nearly scored points but couldn’t quite get them. Lake Washington quickly got into foul trouble with two of their players getting four fouls in the first half. Five fouls would have ejected them from the game. Lake Washington was ahead for a large portion of the game, but Garfield was able to rally for the lead in the fourth quarter. Then, disaster struck when the Kangaroos made a few consecutive shots to take the lead. Garfield played clutch with a minute left and got up by one point. With five seconds left on the clock, Lake Washington sprinted down the court and took one last shot, but it fell to the side of the hoop harmlessly and the buzzer rang. Your Garfield Lady Bulldogs are the Washington State Champions!