Prep girls basketball: Royals rebound in 4th quarter to edge Cedarcrest

Trailing by as much as 14 points in the second half, the Lady Royals basketball team staged a furious comeback Tuesday evening at Lynnwood High School to snatch a 57-55 victory from the hands of the visiting Red Wolves from Cedarcrest.

Cedarcrest led 16-10 after one quarter — and had stretched its lead to 11 in the second quarter with less than four minutes to play in the half — before sophomore center Chloe Clark scored seven straight points to pull Lynnwood back into the game.

The hot-shooting Red Wolves capped the half with a long three-pointer to take a 32-26 lead into halftime.

Cedarcrest began the third on fire and it looked for much of the quarter like it was going to be a difficult night for the Royals.

The fourth quarter began with Lynnwood behind by nine, 48-38. But with 4:30 remaining, Lynnwood had inched back to within five points, 46-51.

That’s when Nakia Boston picked up a loose ball and streaked down court, threading a precision cross- court pass between defenders to teammate Arianna IIog, who completed the break with a lay-in to pull the Royals to within three, 48-51.

Two minutes later, Lynnwood claimed its first lead with 2:30 to play when senior guard Emily Whybark stepped to the free throw line after being fouled and calmly sank two free throws, making it 52-51.

On the next possession, she made a three-pointer from the left wing to give the Royals a four-point lead, 55-51, with 1:51 on the clock.

“She’s hit clutch three-pointers in the fourth quarter all year, and she steps up and does it again. It’s just amazing.” head coach Brandon Newby of Whybark.

A free throw, followed by a long 3, from the Red Wolves’ Jaylin Yowell, tied the game with just 22.5 seconds to go.

Scoreless possessions by both teams had the final seconds ticking away when Nakia Boston was fouled hard, crashing to the floor in front of the Royals bench. The foul sent her to the free throw line shooting a one and one, and she converted the first to give the Royals a one-point lead. 56-55.

The second free throw would rattle out of the basket, but Chloe Clark battled between two Red Wolves to pull down the offensive rebound and she was fouled on the put back.

Clark hit one of her two free throws for a 57-55 Lynnwood lead, leaving the Red Wolves just 2.5 seconds to play.

Lynnwood defended the inbounds pass and Cedarcrest failed to even get a shot off, completing the Royals’ comeback win.

“This is her first year playing varsity.” Newby said of Clark. “Early on, (in the season) I think she was just trying to fit in. She was listening to instruction, but it’s hard sometimes to take that instruction to the floor right away.”

“Now I tell her, they don’t have a matchup for you. This game is yours if you want it. That’s really helped her mindset, and we saw it tonight. That’s by far the best game she’s played all year.” Newby added.

Clark finished in a tie with teammate Nakia Boston as the game’s high scorer at 17, along with double digit rebounds and key blocked shots.

The Royals’ next game will be Friday, Jan. 31, when they visit Edmonds-Woodway High School to take on the Lady Warriors. The game tips off at 5:40 p.m.

Prep Girls Basketball: Cedarcrest at Lynnwood, Jan. 28

Cedarcrest     16   16   16   07 — 55

Lynnwood     10   16   13  18 — 57

Cedarcrest individual scoring: Ava Erhardt 14, Jaylin Yowell 13, Sidra Griffin 8, Kat Townley 7, Ava LaPorte 6, Holly Williams 2, Helena Van Ess 2, Rose Carlson 2, Grace McKenzie 1

Lynnwood individual scoring: Nakia Boston 17, Chloe Clark 17, Emily Whybark 10, Arianna IIog 8, Madison Steele 5, Cassidy Johnson 0, Marika Canda 0, Katelyn Kesinger 0

Records: Cedarcrest 5-5 in 2A/3A Wesco League, 11-5 overall; Lynnwood 7-3 in 2A/3A Wesco Conference; 7-9 overall

Lynnwood next game: versus Edmonds-Woodway; Friday, Jan. 31; 5:40 p.m. at Edmonds-Woodway High School

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