Girls basketball: Teryn Gardner pushes Mead over Mt. Spokane in 3A first-round game; Gonzaga Prep girls advance to 4A title game

Mead has been ranked No. 1 in 3A by the state media poll all season long. The Panthers got a bit of a first-half wake-up call by their school district rival, but their state title contender pedigree showed in the second half.

Defending Greater Spokane League MVP Teryn Gardner scored 25 points, 17 after halftime, and top-seeded Mead beat eighth-seeded Mt. Spokane for the third time this season, 73-31, in a District 8 3A first-round game on Saturday. Mead (21-1) will host Walla Walla, an 83-53 winner over Ferris, in a semifinal on Tuesday.

Mt. Spokane (4-17) travels to Ferris in an elimination game.

Addison Wells Morrison had 13 points and Reese Frederick added 10 for Mead. Mt. Spokane was led by Karis Santucci with nine points off the bench.

Mead coach Quantae Anderson said there’s still plenty of room for improvement.

“We came out flat in the first half, I felt like,” he said. “And they came out and punched us in the mouth. It woke us up and it took some of that to get going.”

Reece Frederick hit a pair of 3-pointers in the first quarter and the Panthers led 16-9 after one quarter. Mt. Spokane scored the first five points of the second quarter, four by Karis Santucci, to draw within two. Addison Wells Morrison hit a 3, then scored off a steal and Mead led 31-21 at the half.

“We made a minor adjustment at halftime,” Anderson said. “I think people were expecting me to yell and do what I do on the sideline, but I was, ‘Let’s just be who we are, play our defense.’ We didn’t play great defense in that first half I didn’t think. And in the second half I think we turned it on.”

Mead opened the second half with a 7-0 run, punctuated by a corner 3 by Morrison. The lead reached 20 on a 3-pointer by Gardner a little later and she hit from NBA range late in the quarter. The Panthers led 52-28 entering the fourth quarter after a 21-7 third quarter.

After Mead had worn down Mt. Spokane with its press all game, the Panthers scored the first 13 points of the fourth quarter.

“I thought midway through the third I could see our pressure just kind of starting to work,” Anderson said. “Teryn had a lot of steals in the frontcourt. It was really cool to see her set that up, and then everyone started picking it up defensively. We were able to hit some layups and open shots because of it.”

District 8 4A

Gonzaga Prep 40, Chiawana 37: Aylah Cornwall hit five 3-pointers and scored 20 points and the Bullpups (18-4) outlasted the visiting Riverhawks (17-6) in a semifinal. G-Prep travels to Kamiakin for the district title game Tuesday. Malia Ruud paced Chiawana with 12 points.

Kamiakin 64, Central Valley 43: Emaunii Smith scored 20 points to lead four in double figures and the Braves (22-1) beat the visiting Bears (16-7) in a first-round game. Eden Sander and Drae Domebo scored 14 points apiece for CV, which hosts LC in an elimination game Tuesday.

Lewis and Clark 48, Hanford 42: Kayla Vue scored 12 points, Sadie Pierce added 11 and the sixth-seeded Tigers (10-12) eliminated the visiting seventh-seeded Falcons (5-15). Lynnea Moran scored 25 points for Hanford.

District 8 3A

Ridgeline 77, Hermiston (Ore.) 48: Madilyn Crowley scored 23 points, Grace Sheridan added 16 and the third-seeded Falcons (12-9) beat the visiting sixth-seeded Bulldogs (10-11) in a first-round game. Izzy Simmons had 12 points for Hermiston. Ridgeline takes on Kennewick in a semifinal Tuesday.

Walla Walla 82, Ferris 53: Madi Reible scored 30 points, Miriam Richards added 26 and the Blue Devils (13-8) beat the visiting Saxons (10-10) in a first-round game. Kayla Jones had 15 points for Ferris, which hosts Mt. Spokane in an elimination game Tuesday.

Kennewick 75, University 56: The second-seeded Braves (16-6) beat the visiting seventh-seeded Titans (9-12) in a first-round game. U-Hi travels to Hermiston for an elimination game Tuesday.

District 7 2B

Colfax 59, Davenport 55: Brynn McGaughy scored 35 points and the Bulldogs (17-4) beat the visiting Gorillas (12-8) in the district championship game at West Valley. Glenna Soliday led Davenport with 24 points.

Northwest Christian 61, Lind-Ritzville/Sprague 41: Macy Shamblin scored 16 points, Claire Metz added 14 and the Crusaders (15-9) beat the visiting Broncos (12-11) in the fifth-place game at West Valley. Zoe Galbreath scored 27 points for Lind-Ritzville/Sprague.

Reardan 59, Liberty 48: Tenice Waters scored 20 points, Rylynn Green and Chasyn Waters added 12 apiece and the Screaming Eagles (18-6) beat the visiting Lancers (17-7) in the third-place game at West Valley. Kendall Denny scored 13 points and Grace Grumbly added 11 for Liberty.