By Eric Trent
Peninsula women’s basketball team suffered a heartbreaking loss at the hands of Bellevue, Saturday night. With only three lead changes, both teams were tied at 25 at halftime. Bellevue scored the opening points in the second half, holding the lead and keeping Peninsula at arms-reach to the end.
Peninsula College jumped out to an 8-2 lead, pressuring Bellevue in turnovers with a smothering full-court press and a ferocious transition offense, until Bellevue chipped away and tied it up at 14 apiece. Thanks to offensive boards by Gabi Fenumiai, and deep twos by Zhara Laster and Madison Pilster, PC took off on a 10-2 run, increasing their lead to 24-16 with 3 minutes left before halftime. Bellevue came right back with a 9-1 run to end the half and tie the game at 25 heading into the locker room.
Bellevue kept the momentum at the start of the second half, taking the lead with the help of a 9-3 run, notching the score at 34-28 in the opening four minutes. “That’s uncharacteristic” of us, said PC head coach Alison Crumb. Peninsula never went away though, tying the game at 51 even with 6:43 left in the game, fueled by treys from Cherish and Cierra Moss, and back to back lay-ins by Imani Smith.
Bellevue, wouldn’t relinquish the lead, taking advantage of defensive lapses by PC, and keeping Peninsula at bay, finally ending the game at 67-62. “You wish you had another timeout in your back pocket” Crumb said.
Bellevue owned the boards, grabbing 48 to PC’s 39. “We struggled in the 2nd half on boards” Crumb said. Peninsula did come away with more steals and less turnovers than Bellevue but couldn’t seem to capitalize at the right moments. “Give credit to Bellevue. They did a good job stopping our transition. We’ve been in close games before. We’ve won them, we’ve lost them. It’s just about who makes plays down the stretch and who can execute.”
Pilster had an all-around game, dropping 14 points, snatching seven rebounds, with two assists and two steals. Smith added 12 points, four rebounds, and two steals. Fenumiai had seven points, grabbed 10 rebounds, and poached an impressive three steals, as a post.
Peninsula dropped to 4-1 in league play, and 10-5 overall. Bellevue improved to 5-0 in league play, and 14-6 overall. PC plays at Skagit Valley (4-1) 14-7, on Wednesday.