Coeur d’Alene girls top LC, extend streak

Through a lot of fault of her own, Kama Griffitts had fresh legs for the fourth quarter Friday night.

It’s a good thing she saved herself.

Griffitts came back after early foul trouble and led host Coeur d’Alene in the decisive fourth quarter of a 49-35 basketball victory over Lake City at Elmer Jordan Court.

CdA extended its season-opening win streak to eight and improved to 4-0 in the Inland Empire League. Lake City lost to the Vikings for the second time and slipped to 6-2 overall, 3-2 in the IEL.

The Timberwolves roared back from a 13-point deficit in the third quarter to close within 33-31 headed into the game’s final 8 minutes.

Griffitts dropped in a 3-pointer to open the fourth quarter, and she later scored seven points during an 11-0 spurt the turned the contest into a rout.

“It’s about time she scored,” Vikings coach Dale Poffenroth joked.

“Tonight I made a mistake by getting two fouls in the first quarter,” added Griffitts, a sophomore. “I had to sit on the bench a little while.”

CdA still is learning to adjust to the absence of forward Deanna Dotts, a 6-foot-1 junior nursing a broken finger on her left hand. Dotts is expected to miss several weeks, and the Vikings must count on other players to contribute.

Griffitts and Jenna DeLong were those players against the Timberwolves, accounting for 11 and 10 points, respectively. Griffitts said she and DeLong must anchor the low post on defense while Dotts is sidelined, and she believes they’re making strides.

“Right away it seemed like we knew what we wanted to do,” Griffitts said.

Lake City trailed 33-20 after CdA’s Lindsey Stark tossed in a 3-pointer with 4 ½ minutes left in the third quarter to cap a 7-0 run. The Timberwolves scored 11 consecutive points over the next 3 minutes to trim CdA’s lead to two.

Lake City’s Riki Moreland scored 11 points and Katie Baker added 10.