Seahawks Girls Secure Third Place in SSC, Beating Gig Harbor, 42-27

The Peninsula Seahawks girls basketball team claimed sole possession of third place in the South Sound Conference with a win over Gig Harbor Saturday, Feb. 3, 42-27. It was the Seahawks' second win over the Tides in less than 48 hours.

Peninsula beat Gig Harbor, 36-33, on Thursday and both teams finished with a 9-5 record in the conference, tying for third place. This “play-in” game, of sorts, determined seeding for the district playoffs next week.

The Tides Kaliyah Miller scored a lay-up only three seconds into the game, but that was the last time Gig Harbor had the lead. A pair of threes each by Seahawks guards Maci Miller and Kaylia Heidelberg helped put the Seahawks up 15-10 at the end of the first quarter. Peninsula then quietly built onto their lead going up as much as 17 points, 40-23, with 3:48 left in the game.

“Our offense had no flow (in Thursday night’s win),” said Seahawks coach Hannah Lekson. “We have to work on that, learn to move together, and get great shots, not just good shots.”

Maci Miller led all scorers with 14 points – all in the first half. Heidelberg had 13 and Grace Richardson chipped in 11. Kaliyah Miller finished with seven points for the Tides. Gig Harbor was again without leading scorer Taylor Schwab who continues to heal from a knee injury she received earlier in the week.

Peninsula finished the regular season with a 12-7 overall record, and 10-5 in conference play. Gig Harbor is now in fourth place in the conference standings and is 12-9 overall and 9-6 in the SSC.

The Seahawks won’t have much time to celebrate their third-place finish. Coming up for them in the first round of the district playoffs is the undefeated league champion North Thurston Rams. The date and time for that game is still being determined. The Rams have already beaten Peninsula twice this season, including a 53-42 win on Jan. 24. North Thurston is led by Soraya Ogaldez, who averages 28.3 points per game.