State 2B girls basketball: Balanced offense leads Liberty past Chief Leschi, sets up semifinal showdown with Colfax
Liberty guard Grace Grumbly knows opponents tend to lock in on standout teammate Teagan Colvin each time down the court.
On Thursday, Grumbly was one of several Lancers happy to remind the Chief Leschi Warriors that Colvin isn’t their only scoring threat.
Grumbly hit four 3-pointers and scored 16 points, and the seventh-seeded Lancers used a 26-5 third-quarter burst to top Chief Leschi 59-29 in a State 2B girls quarterfinal at the Arena.
“Everyone on our team can shoot and score from anywhere on the floor,” Grumbly said. “I just got a talk from coach before the game saying it was time to go, and I was able to knock down a bunch of shots.”
It wasn’t just Grumbly the eighth-seeded Warriors couldn’t contain. Colvin pitched in with a 22-point, 14-rebound effort, and forward Ellie Denny added 11 points and grabbed 11 rebounds.
“It’s always a good sign when all of us are scoring like we were today, it makes the game a lot more simple,” Colvin said. “I love when people are making open shots and making tough buckets, too. So scoring across the floor is the key to winning these games.”
More impressive than the scoring output to Liberty coach Chris Colvin was his team’s defensive effort. The Lancers (20-2) held Chief Leschi (15-6) to 24% shooting and 17.6% from 3-point range.
“It has to start on the defensive end, it doesn’t matter how many points we score if we can’t get stops,” Chris Colvin said. “We don’t want to get into a track meet and try to outscore people. When we can get stops, that’s when we can grow a lead on the offensive side.”
The victory sets up a semifinal showdown with a familiar foe, league rival and second-seeded Colfax.
Friday’s game between the Lancers and Bulldogs (20-1) will be the fourth of the season, with Colfax winning two of the previous three – including a 76-39 victory in the district title game last month.
Colfax breezed by fifth-seeded Raymond 67-34 in their quarterfinal, paced by the inside-outside duo of freshman forward Brynn McGaughy (27 points, 18 rebounds) and senior guard Asher Cai (22 points).
“They go one through eight, and everyone knows and executes their roles so well,” Chris Colvin said. “And then you throw in some high-end talented players that are gonna play in college and it makes it difficult to match up.
“You can’t take away everything from a team like Colfax, and some nights you can’t take away anything.”
That doesn’t mean the defending champion Lancers are shying away from the challenge, especially with a second straight berth into the state title game on the line.
“It’s going to take a complete effort, but that’s the same thing it took this game and it’s the same thing it takes every game,” Teagan Colvin said. “We’re gonna come out ready, stick to the game plan, play together and mostly getting down and tough on the defensive end.”
The semifinal is set to tip off at 5:30 p.m. The 3:45 p.m. semifinal will feature second-seeded Warden against fourth-seeded Okanogan.