State 2A girls: Deer Park outlasts Prosser for third place 52-50

YAKIMA – Any concerns of a first-loss hangover that Deer Park coaches might’ve had before Saturday’s State 2A placing game were quickly eased when the Stags ripped off the first eight points of the game.

It was the second half when Stags coach KC Ahrens and his staff had to fret in the Yakima Valley SunDome.

But you don’t win your first 25 games of the season and 40 straight conference games without knowing how to finish. That’s just what third-seeded Deer Park did against No. 6 Prosser, sneaking out a 52-50 victory after an 18-point first half became a three-point deficit in the final moments.

“We were worried, and I’m sure Prosser was a little worried, too, of how do you respond after an emotional game that we thought we could’ve or should’ve won (Friday) night and the kids were broken,” Ahrens said. “We talked about, ‘How do you want to go out?’ If you lose, you lose, but you don’t want to get rolled early and act like you don’t care.”

The Stags claimed third place in their first season in 2A.

Deer Park placed second in 1A last year, nearly denying Nooksack Valley and finishing 26-1, which it matched this year.

The game seemed headed for an early knockout with the Stags building a 25-7 lead late in the second quarter and taking a 13-point edge into halftime.

But Prosser – its only losses were to No. 1 Lynden, second-seeded Ellensburg, 4A contender Woodinville and Deer Park in a Feb. 28 regional – didn’t go away.

CWAC leading scorer Herbie Wright, held to four points in the first half, sparked the rally, finishing with 18 points.

Lay’lee Dixon added two 3-pointers, the latter of which gave the Mustangs its their first lead (48-47) of the game.

Another Prosser bucket extended the lead to three in the final minute.

“We made her work,” Ahrens said of Wright. “We did a good job early, but we were tired, and our bench isn’t very deep.”

Brooklyn Coe, one of four seniors for the Stags, drilled a deep 3-pointer to knot the score at 50.

The Stags’ defense then dug in. Sophomore Ashlan Bryant, who had rolled her ankle, came up with a loose ball and was undercut, slamming to the floor but earning a trip to the line.

“She could barely walk, and she finished it,” said Ahrens, noting that if Bryant couldn’t shoot the free throws, a replacement would. “I was looking at my bench, thinking if I had a good free-throw shooter.”

Bryant, the Greater Spokane League Player of the Year for 2A teams, drained both free throws.

Wright drove to the hoop on the ensuing possession, but her shot rimmed off.

Bryant, who claimed the Northeast 1A Player of the Year as a freshman, finished with a game-high 20 points. Coe added 14 points and Jacey Boesel chipped in 12 points and a game-best nine rebounds.

“There’s no moment too big for any one of them,” Ahrens said.