Skyline High School Girls' Basketball Squad Falls Short Against Woodinville Falcons

KIRKLAND – The Skyline High School Spartans had a great start Friday evening only to fall short in their game against the Woodinville High Falcons, 55-47, settling for second place in the 4A KingCo League Tournament.

Falcons’ junior guard Deidre Miller placed 21 points, as the Spartans could not answer back with the same amount of field goals in the fourth quarter. Skyline’s senior guard Lindsey Nicholson led her team with 13 points.

Skyline senior wing Christy Cofano started the fourth quarter with a steal before Woodinville’s junior center Ali Forde had one and a lay-up to get the Falcons (19-5) to within two points. Forde finished the game with eight points, 17 rebounds, six steals and four assists. Miller made one of her three-point field goals to give Woodinville their third lead of the game, 43-42.

Skyline answered with a field goal made by senior wing Michelle Bretl. Bretl finished the night with eight points and one steal. The Spartans (16-8) would take their final lead on a field goal made by sophomore guard Haley Smith, who finished with 12 points and one steal. The Falcons sealed the game with sophomore guard Kim Frost making her last two free throws with 43 seconds remaining in the game.

“We just didn’t execute in the fourth quarter,” Skyline Head Coach Greg Bruns said.

The coach added that he hoped the Spartans would apply more pressure against the Falcons.

In the third quarter, the game was kept tight. Spartans’ junior post Megan Wiedeman broke a tie with her field goal to make the score 24-22, before Miller made one of her three-point field goals to give the Falcons a one-point lead. Skyline had their biggest third quarter lead at 42-35 before Woodinville scored three more points to end the period.

The Spartans had a strong first quarter start, going up 10-2 in the first four minutes. Nicholson made two consecutive three-point field goals during the first three minutes.

“We ran a couple of different looks Woodinville hadn’t seen before,” Bruns said. “Lindsey knocked them down.”

Although the Spartans did not have a big lead during the first half, the Falcons had their own scoring troubles, from not completing lay-ups to having shots hit the rim but not go through.

“There’s a lid on the bucket,” Woodinville Head Coach Scott Bullock said. “Some would go in and come out.”

Skyline will enter the 4A State Tournament as the No. 2 seed from the Sea-King District 2, facing the No. 7 team from the West Central District 3 or Southwest Washington District 4. The game will be played at Rogers High School in Puyallup Friday, Feb. 25.