24th Annual
North Central District "A"
Girls Basketball Tournament
1999
  First Round Semifinals

Champ

ionship

 Semifinals First Round District Main
                           
                   
    #6 Lake Roosevelt
(6-14)		                 #5 Cashmere
(10-10)		    
                   
                 
    Game 1.   Chelan
(16-5)		         Tonasket
(15-6)		   Game 2.    
        Score: 40-20         Score: 39-35        
                           
    #3 Chelan
(15-5)		   Game 3.   Chelan
(17-5)		         #4 Tonasket
(14-6)		    
        Score: 56-39            
                         
        Game 8.
#1 seed to state		  

Liberty
(19

 Bell
-3)

            
           

Score

: 49-37

           
                 
              Liberty Bell
(18-3)		   Game 4.        
          Score: 50-20        
                     
        #2 Okanogan
(15-5)		         #1 Liberty Bell
(17-3)		        
                       
                           
        Cashmere
(10-11)		         Lake Roosevelt
(6-15)		        
    Game 5.   Okanogan
(17-5)		            
          Score: 53-35          
      Game 7.  

Tona
(17

sket
-7)

        
         

Score

: 32-31

        
            Tonasket
(16-7)		   Game 6.    
    Okanogan
(16-5)		     Score: 55-39   Tonasket
(15-7)		  

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Chelan 40, Lake Roosevelt 20
Game 1.
At Chelan, WA

The Goats' defense accomplished its mission of limiting the Raiders' 3-point opportunities.
It worked as Lake Roosevelt had just 10 points through the third quarter after beating Brewster in a Monday play-in game.
"They can get going with those 3s, so we extended our zone to make sure they didn't get any good looks outside," Chelan coach Steve Stamps said. "We just had a little trouble scoring ourselves in that first quarter (leading 4-3)."
Abby Cullen and Shelly Haerling combined for 17 points and 24 rebounds to pace Chelan. Amelia Fragnito added seven rebounds while Mellanie Lloyd had six steals.

Lake Roosevelt (6-14) - Zowada 5, St. Pierre 3, Wiese, Desautel, Dashiell 2, Johnson, Babbler, Wilson 2, Vargas, Bearcub 3, Abrahamson 5.
Chelan (16-5) - Lloyd 5, N. Haerling 8, Dobbs, Long, Hobus, Gores 4, S. Haerling 9, Cullen 8, Fragnito 2, Collins, West 4.
Lake Roosevelt

------------

 3 5 10 20
Chelan

------------

 4 17 29 40

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Tonasket 39, Cashmere 35
Game 2.
At Tonasket, WA

Stephanie Clarkson and Codi Freeman each netted 13 points, and Vanessa Freeman put the defensive clamps on Kaci Pipkin, holding scoreless one of the league's top players.
Vanessa Freeman also collected five assists and five steals, drained a pair of late free throws and fed cousin Codi Freeman on a late basket.
Codi Freeman added six steals and five rebounds. Clarkson pulled down eight rebounds.
Hannah Flick led the Bulldogs with 12 points.

Cashmere (10-11) - Jordan 5, Pipkin, Flick 12, George 7, Crossland 8, Rantz 3, Raftery.
Tonasket (15-6) - Wilson, Sutton, Messenger 6, Clarkson 13, C. Freeman 13, V. Freeman 5, Helleson 2.
Cashmere ------------ 7 18 22 35
Tonasket ------------ 12 24 32 39

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Chelan 56, Okanogan 39
Game 3.
At Omak, WA

It was enough to make even a veteran coach feel equal parts joy and immense relief.
The Chelan girls' basketball program earned its first-ever state tournament berth with a 56-39 win over Okanogan in the first North Central District 1A semifinal game Friday night.
Shelly Haerling put together a remarkable 31-point effort for Chelan, which just missed a state trip last year with a loss to Tonasket in the third-place game.
"It's been a long five years. The kids deserve all the credit," said Chelan coach Steve Stamps, who guided a successful Wenatchee Valley College women's program before taking over at Chelan in 1994.
The Goats will play defending district champion Liberty Bell in next Friday's 8:30 p.m. championship game at Omak. Liberty Bell crushed Tonasket 50-20 in Friday's other semifinal pairing. Both finalists are guaranteed berths to the State 1A tourney, scheduled for March 3-6 at the Tacoma Dome.
Haerling, a 5-foot-11 junior post, delivered when her team needed it most, since senior standout post Abby Cullen played barely half of the game because of foul problems.
Haerling shot 9 of 18 from the field and 13 of 14 at the foul line, plus worked the boards for seven rebounds. Her 31-point effort tied her for fifth (with Okanogan's Sarah Works, 1987) on the district's single-game scoring record list.
"She's a gamer," Stamps said. "In clutch time, she asked for the ball and we got it to her."
Mellanie Lloyd provided a strong boost as well, totaling 11 points (5-for-5 foul shooting), four rebounds and three steals.
The teams combined to shoot 79 percent at the free-throw line. Chelan was 19 of 24, Okanogan 16 of 20.
"We'd like to have snuck in last year, but this finally paid off for them," Stamps added. "It's great, because they're probably better kids than they are basketball players (smart too, with a team grade-point average of 3.75), and they're pretty good players."
Amelia Fragnito pulled down seven rebounds for Chelan.
Okanogan's Maggie Derting and Amanda Merkley each scored 10 points.

Chelan (17-5) - Lloyd 11, N. Haerling 7, Dobbs 1, Long, Hobus, Gores 1, S. Haerling 31, Cullen 2, Fragnito 3, Collins, West.
Okanogan (16-5) - Felton, K. Attridge 6, Derting 10, Lisenbey, J. Attridge, Peasley 6, Merkley 10, Chamberlin 2, Hill, Kennedy, Mitzner, Walker 5.
Chelan ------------ 11 27 38 56
Okanogan ------------ 9 19 28 39

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Liberty Bell 50, Tonasket 20
Game 4.
At Omak, WA

Ballhawking was the fixation all game long for the Mountain Lions, who pounded Chelan 70-27 in their last outing, a Caribou Trail League finale a week earlier.
Liberty Bell held the Tigers to single-digit scoring in every quarter.
"They had the proper focus on defense," Liberty Bell coach Mike Bourn said. "They are peaking at the proper time."
Erin Torpey led Liberty Bell with 14 points, nine rebounds, and five steals. Bourn gave kudos to all his seniors, including Torpey, Katie Liebl, and Rachelle Bradshaw. He gave Liebl special credit for putting pressure on Tonasket's point guard.
"The seniors really stepped it up and came ready to pay attention to business," Bourn said. "Hats off to them."
Stephanie Clarkson led Tonasket with eight points.

Tonasket (15-7) - Wilson 2, Jensen, Sutton 2, Messenger 2, Clarkson 8, C. Freeman 2, V. Freeman 2, Helleson, Buchert 2, Rehanek, Delrosario.
Liberty Bell (18-3) - Bradshaw 8, Liebl 1, DeKalb 2, Gardner 4, Thomas 2, VanHess 1, Coe 5, Nickell 5, Bovee, Werremeyer 6, Torpey 14, Lloyd 2.
Tonasket

------------

 2 8 11 20
Liberty Bell

------------

 16 26 32 50

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Okanogan 53, Cashmere 35
Game 5. (Loser out)
At Okanogan, WA

Amanda Merkley scored 20 points and grabbed nine rebounds for the Bulldogs.
"We played much better than Friday," Okanogan coach Michelle Ferenz said, referring to a 56-39 loss to Chelan. "We came out and everybody contributed."
Maggie Derting chipped in 12 points, dished 10 assists and grabbed seven steals. Melanie Chamberlin added six points and five rebounds, and Okanogan dominated the glass with a 37-11 rebounding edge.
"We really got on the boards and didn't give them a lot of second chances," Ferenz said.
Kaci Pipkin led Cashmere with 10 points.

Cashmere (10-12) - Pipkin 10, Flick 6, George 4, Crossland 5, Rantz 3, Jordan 2, Duggan, Raftery 3, Green, E. Boyle, R. Boyle, Piper 2.
Okanogan (17-5) - K. Attridge, Derting 12, Peasley 7, Merkley 20, Chamberlin 6, Felton, Lisenbey, Hill, Kennedy 1, Mitzner, Walker 7.
Cashmere ------------ 5 9 16 35
Okanogan ------------ 12 26 35 53

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Tonasket 55, Lake Roosevelt 39
Game 6. (Loser out)
At Tonasket, WA

Codi Freeman led a balanced attack with 11 points, 12 rebounds, six steals and seven assists for the Tigers.
Jacque Wilson chipped in 10 points, 10 rebounds and two steals, and Stephanie Clarkson scored 12 points and snagged seven rebounds.
"We were a little better balanced scoring tonight," Tonasket coach Gary Smith said, comparing the game to his team's 50-20 loss to Liberty Bell last Friday.
"We moved the ball better. We had nice ball reversal and good passing."
The Raiders were led by Lindsay Zowada's 16 points, including three first-half treys. Raynee St. Pierre (10 points) had one first-half 3-pointer as well.
The Tigers grabbed 38 rebounds and only had 12 turnovers -- their second-lowest total of the year -- compared with 32 turnovers against Liberty Bell.
They also had 14 assists compared with only three against the Mountain Lions.

Lake Roosevelt (6-15) - Zowada 16, Birdwell, St. Pierre 10, Wiese, Desautel 4, Dashiell, Johnson, Babler 2, Wilson 5, Vargas, Bearcub, Abrahamson 1.
Tonasket (16-7) - J. Wilson 10, Jensen, Sutton 4, Messenger 8, Clarkson 12, C. Freeman 11, V. Freeman 3, Delrosario, Helleson 3, Buchert 2, Rehanek 2.
Lake Roosevelt 11 22 28 39
Tonasket 14 24 39 55

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Tonasket 32, Okanogan 31
Game 7. (Winner #3 to state, loser out)
At Omak, WA

Going into the third quarter, the Tigers not only needed points, but shots.
Tonasket had just 11 points and 13 shots, yet only trailed 14-11.
"I told the team our defense was great, but we had to find a way to get shots," Tiger coach Gary Smith said.
They did as the Tigers found ways to score 14 of their 32 points in the third quarter. Junior guard Jacque Wilson started Tonasket's offense with a 15-footer. More outside shots followed, including a 3-pointer by Stephanie Clarkson and 10-footer by Codi Freeman while being fouled for a three-point play.
"The coach told us we had to get open," Codi Freeman said. "We needed to do a better job of setting screens, cutting and passing."
All that offensive activity created an eight-point lead going into the fourth quarter.
Meanwhile, Okanogan suffered from similar frustrations. The Bulldogs were getting shots (45 for the game), but not field goals.
"We've been inconsistent on offense most of the season," Okanogan coach Michelle Ferenz said. "We had open layups (on fast breaks) but didn't convert them. No matter how well you play on defense, you still need to score."
The Bulldogs rallied, keyed by guards Naomi Peasley and Maggie Derting. Peasley had a couple of rebound baskets while Derting hit a trey with 1:35 left to tie the game.
"When Maggie hit that 3, I thought the momentum had shifted," Ferenz said. "Even after her shot, we had the opportunities but couldn't convert."
Free throws decided the game. Tonasket hit 7 of 11 foul shots led by Clarkson's 4-for-4 effort. The junior swished a pair with 41 seconds left to give the Tigers the lead. Clarkson finished with a team-high 11 points while Codi Freeman had nine points and nine rebounds before fouling out in the final minute.
"Stephanie has worked hard on her foul shots. It paid off," the Smith said.
Meanwhile, the Bulldogs went 1 of 7 in the final quarter and 4 of 15 for the game.
Derting led Okanogan with 12 points. Amanda Merkley pulled down eight rebounds while Melanie Chamberlin had six steals.

Tonasket (17-7) - Messenger 4, Clarkson 11, C. Freeman 9, J. Wilson 6, V. Freeman 2, Sutton, Helleson. Totals 9-30 13-22 32.
Okanogan (17-6) - Peasley 7, Chamberlin 1, Merkley 6, K. Attridge, Derting 12, Lisenbey, Walker 3, Hill 2, J. Attridge. Totals 13-45 4-15 31.
Tonasket ------------ 6 11 25 32
Okanogan ------------ 7 14 17 31
3-point FG-- Tonasket 1-6 (Clarkson), Okanogan 1-4 (Derting).
Rebounds-- Tonasket 25 (C. Freeman 9), Okanogan 29 (Merkley 8).
Turnovers-- Tonasket 19, Okanogan 16.
Fouls-- Tonasket 11 (C. Freeman), Okanogan 18.

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Liberty Bell 49, Chelan 37
Game 8. (Championship, both to state)
At Omak, WA

A basketball fan craving tough defense was in heaven at the North Central District 1A girls' basketball finals on Saturday.
Liberty Bell (19-3) beat Chelan 49-37 with a rally in the final nine minutes to claim the district title, the Lions' second consecutive crown and third appearance at the State 1A tourney, Wednesday through Saturday in the Tacoma Dome. Chelan (17-6) is making its first-ever state appearance.
Earlier, Tonasket (17-7) upset second-seed Okanogan 32-31 to earn the No. 3 berth.
Liberty Bell is the early starter, playing White Pass (18-6) in the 10:30 a.m. Wednesday game. Tonasket faces White Swan (16-7) at 1:30 p.m. Chelan has the closer, going against Ocosta (20-3) at 8 p.m.
Since the state appearances were secured, the teams simulated a game in Tacoma very nicely.
"It felt like a state game, a physical, close game," Lion coach Mike Bourn said. "This was a great game to prepare for state."
Chelan coach Steve Stamps had the same opinion.
"This is the kind of game and environment we'll have to deal with at state," Stamps said.
Chelan found an early comfort level. The Goats used a four-point possession (inside baskets by Shelly Haerling and Abby Cullen sandwiched by an early foul) to get going.
The Lions then owned the second quarter led by Natalia DeKalb's eight points. The junior guard suffered a sprained ankle in the third quarter and her status is uncertain for state.
"Natalia is a key player for us. She helps settle the team down," Bourn said.
Chelan used the inside-outside combination of Cullen and Nikki Haerling in the third quarter. Both scored six points, including four free throws by the freshman Haerling as the Goats took the lead.
It didn't last as Liberty Bell scored the final six points of the third quarter. Erin Torpey drained three foul shots and Rachelle Bradshaw made the Goats pay for a turnover by hitting a trey just before the buzzer.
"Our offense wasn't going well, but we worked through it," Torpey said. "It was time to go and Rachelle hit a big shot. That's how it is for us. Everybody contributes."
Torpey's play helped secure the win. The senior guard scored seven of her 16 points in the fourth quarter. She also had nine rebounds and five assists.
Liberty Bell's pressure defense was also a factor as Chelan had 25 turnovers. Katie Liebl and Bradshaw had six steals each while DeKalb added four.
"Liberty Bell's pressure is a good test for us, getting ready for next week," Stamps said. "We did a better job of not letting our turnovers convert directly into easy baskets."
Nikki Haerling finished with 16 points while Cullen had 14 points and 10 rebounds.

Chelan (17-6) - Lloyd, S. Haerling 4, Cullen 14, Fragnito 2, N. Haerling 16, Gores 1, Dobbs, Hobus, Terry. Totals 15-38 7-11 37.
Liberty Bell (19-3) - Nickell 5, Torpey 16, Werremeyer 4, Gardner 4, Liebl 2, Bradshaw 5, DeKalb 13, Thomas, Coe. Totals 16-34 16-19 49.
Chelan ------------ 13 15 29 37
Liberty Bell ------------ 14 24 34 49
3-point FG-- Chelan 0-3, Liberty Bell 1-4 (Bradshaw).
Rebounds-- Chelan 29 (Cullen 10), Liberty Bell 21 (Torpey 9).
Turnovers-- Chelan 25, Liberty Bell 18.
Fouls-- Chelan 17 (N. Haerling), Liberty Bell 16.

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Tournament Scoring Leaders
Player Team Total Points Games Played Average