Olympic boys, girls sweep Vikings

With little more than pride on the line, the Olympic Trojans and North Kitsap Vikings met on the hardwood Wednesday, almost mirror images of each other.

Both had struggled at times this season, but both squads had also lost a number of close games that could have easily sent them towards .500 records.

But when it counted head-to-head, the Trojans showed the team’s first win over NK (2-11, 4-14) on Jan. 11 was no fluke.

Olympic (4-15, 3-10) won at home Wednesday, 62-54, to propel them out of the Narrows League Bridge Division’s basement while at the same time doubling the team’s win total from a season ago.

“It feels good,” Olympic coach Tyson Whitfield said. “I was a little nervous with it being the last week and all.”

The reason Whitfield was nervous wasn’t over his team’s abilities, but rather, it’s focus after the team spent the week having more fun together than anything else.

“The kids had been keeping a lighter attitude,” he said. “But they were able to turn their focus on tonight and get us another victory.”

For Olympic’s seniors, who struggled through last season’s 2-18 mark, the improvement, while not great in the win column, was certainly witnessed on the court.

“It felt really good. Just kind of a relief, you know,” senior Chris Maclaren, who led Oly with 17 points, said. “We were just right on the border there.”

The Trojans lost six games this season by 10 points or less, and several others were much closer than the scored indicated. For that reason, Whitfield said it was nice to win the way they did.

“Our record definitely could have been better,” Whitfield said. “They went through those experiences and learned from their mistakes. But it’s not always about your record.”

Senior Justin Turner agreed, adding that he’s optimistic for those who will be returning.

“It’s been good,” Turner said of the turnaround. “We put in a lot of hard work my first couple years. But I’m really excited for the guys who will be back next year.”

Maclaren agreed, saying what he’ll miss most are the teammates he’s tried to help mentor along the way.

“Just the guys, my teammates. We had lots of fun,” Maclaren said. “It was definitely a fun year.”

Whitfield said he’s also excited for the future, both in terms of having his system in place as well as a strong young core of returners.

“I feel really confident,” he said. “Especially with two key components (Ryan Neal and Richard Smith) coming back.”

The boys battled league-leaders South Kitsap yesterday in the season finale. Results were unavailable at press time.

“We have one goal left,” Whitfield said. “Beat South Kitsap.”

Klahowya

The Klahowya boys basketball squad, experiencing similar difficulties, had another strong effort slip away Tuesday when the team hosted Eatonville.

While the Eagles put together one the team’s most complete games of the season, Klahowya simply couldn’t keep up after a close first half, falling 79-68 to one of the Nisqually’s tougher 2A teams.

Eatonville (11-8, 6-5) only led 39-38 at the half.

But an 18-11 third quarter gave the Crusaders the edge they needed.

John Rarig had another monster game for the Eagles (3-15, 1-10), scoring 27 points while teammate Caleb Leavitt added 16. Eric Pate led Eatonville with a game-high 31.

Central Kitsap

The CK boys narrowly edged Shelton Wednesday, holding off a late fouth-quarter charge to win 58-55 on the road.

JR Gordon sparked CK with a 20-point effort, while Western Washington university-bound Cody Oakes chipped in a dozen.

Girls basketball

Klahowya

The Klahowya girls also had a tough time Tuesday, falling to Eatonville, 74-16.

Eatonville is the Nisqually leader right now, at 1-2 (11-0) on the season. Klahowya dropped to 1-17 (0-11) in the loss.

Central Kitsap

The Lady Cougs kept rolling right along, spurning Shelton 63-28 Wednesday.

The win improved the Cougars to 19-0 before last night’s rematch with Gig Harbor.

Megan Hoisington led CK with 21 points while Kim Kummer chipped in with 11.

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