TACOMA – A bit bleary eyed, but no less determined, the Arlington girls basketball team shrugged off the distraction and discomfort of an 8 a.m. tipoff to prevail against West Seattle in a down-to-the-wire thriller, 41-40, Saturday at the Tacoma Dome.
The victory, which gives the Eagles a final record of 24-4, wrapped up a fourth-place finish for Arlington at the Class 3A state tournament.
“It’s been a great season all the way around,” said Eagles coach Joe Marsh. “I’m just so proud of these kids with their determination and grit. They just would never quit, and that’s the thing I’m most proud of.”
Quitting was indeed a possibility after Arlington suffered a 67-44 loss against Bishop Blanchet in Thursday’s tournament opener, Marsh acknowledged. “We could’ve easily packed it in after that first day,” he said. “You come out here all excited to be at state … and then we got beat up good. So that one stung.”
But on the heels of that defeat, the Eagles showed their pluck in beating Wilson 59-56 on Friday and West Seattle on Saturday.
After Thursday’s loss, Marsh said, “I told (the team), ‘Hey, we’ve still got some life. There’s still time to go get a trophy.’ And we came out and beat two really good teams. I’m just so proud of the way they responded. This team is all about heart. They just did a great job and we’re really, really happy with the fourth-place trophy.”
Getting past West Seattle was no small feat. The Wildcats had a size advantage at almost every position, including 6-foot-6 junior center Lydia Giomi.
But it was the smallest player on the court who maybe made the biggest difference.
Arlington’s Serafina Balderas, a 5-0 junior guard, scored all of her 10 points in the decisive second half, including three 3-pointers in a 6½-minute span of the late-third and early-fourth quarters.
“I’m so proud of her,” Marsh said. After playing sparingly against Wilson the day before, “I told her she responded like a champion today. … That kid has no fear. She’s been the smallest player on the floor her entire life, and she still has no fear. She got some open looks today and she knocked them down.”
Balderas’ second and third 3s, 80 seconds apart, lifted the Eagles into a lead they never lost, though there were still some nervous moments down the stretch.
Arlington’s Jayla Russ followed Balderas’ two 3-pointers with one of her own, and teammate Gracie Castaneda scored next with a free throw and then a baseline layin to give the Eagles a 41-35 lead with 1:41 remaining. But with a chance to clinch the win at the free throw line, Arlington left the door open by twice missing the first shot of one-and-one chances at the stripe.
West Seattle cut the deficit in half with a 3-pointer by forward Emily Fiso, and Giomi added a putback basket with eight seconds on the clock as the Wildcats closed within one. But the Eagles made the in-bounds pass and were able to play keep-away until the final horn sounded.
Forward Jessica Ludwig, one of two Arlington seniors playing their final game, said the early start no doubt contributed to a contest that was ragged at times.
“I think both teams were definitely waking up,” she said. “It was a little bit of a sloppy game in the beginning. We didn’t play the way we could and maybe they didn’t either.
“But we’re really good at fighting through adversity, no matter what. It’s a test of character, and in any game when we’re down or when things aren’t going right we just push through adversity.”
“At this time of year, all you’ve got to do is have one more (point) than them at the end,” Marsh added. “You just have to get enough to walk out with a W, and today we did.”
At the Tacoma Dome
Arlington 13 5 6 17 – 41
West Seattle 14 7 5 14 – 40
Arlington–Gracie Castaneda 9, Serafina Balderas 10, Sarah Shortt 2, Sevi Bielser 6, Peyton Brown 0, Brittany Denike 0, Olivia Larson 2, Emmi Modahl 0, Jessica Ludwig 0, Abby Anderson 0, Jayla Russ 12. West Seattle–Izzy Turk 0, Lydia Giomi 12, Charli Elliott 2, Lani Taylor 0, Annalisa Ursino 2, Lexi Ioane 8, Emily Fiso 16. 3-point goals–Gracie Castaneda 1, Serafina Balderas 3, Sevi Bielser 2, Jayla Russ 3, Emily Fiso 4. Records–Arlington is 24-4 overall. West Seattle is 23-5.
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