GIRLS BASKETBALL: Ravens jolt Eagles in SPSL North opener, Trojans, Falcons and Lions all get wins

Mercedes Wetmore scored a game-high 23 points and junior Kat Cooper added 14 as Auburn Riverside rallied to pull off a significant road win – a 61-47 conquest at top-ranked Federal Way on Friday night in a South Puget Sound League North Division girls basketball opener.

By Shawn Skager • December 7, 2009 1:34 pm
Auburn Riverside's Kathleen Cooper grabs a rebound over Federal Way's Jaleecia Roland.
Auburn Riverside's Kathleen Cooper grabs a rebound over Federal Way's Jaleecia Roland.

The No. 6 ranked 4A Auburn Riverside Ravens served notice this past week that they are not a team to be trifled with, beating the No. 7 ranked Federal Eagles 61-47 in a South Puget Sound League North 4A contest at Federal High School.

Down 33-28 at the half, the Ravens (2-0 league, 3-0 overall) outscored the Eagles (0-2, 2-2) 33-14 in the second half, mounting a 16-0 run in the fourth quarter to put away the league win.

“We definitely didn’t expect to win a league game on the road by 14 points, especially against a team as talented as Federal Way,” head coach Terry Johnson said. “We expected a hard fought game, and that really is what it was. The game was much closer than the score may indicate. We hit some big shots in the second half, and we executed better defensively than we had in the first half.”

Mercedes Wetmore led the team offensively with 23 points with Kat Cooper adding 14 points. Jalea Crump added 10 points.

The University of Washington-bound Wetmore scored 16 of her 23 in the first half. Cooper, who occupies the wing position, scored 11 of her 14 points in the second half, including eight of Auburn Riverside’s 11 points in the third quarter.

Federal Way was led by Darah Huertas-Vining’s 13 points.

The Ravens followed up the win with a 62-42 victory over Tahoma this past Tuesday.

The team will host the No. 2 ranked Kentwood Conquerors (2-0, 4-0)this Thursday.

ELSEWHERE: The Auburn (1-1 league, 1-2 overall) girls basketball team got in the win column Tuesday evening with a 51-37 SPSL North 4A win over Kentridge (0-2, 0-3). The Trojans were led by Sienna Pollard’s 14 points, with Heather Restrepo adding 12. The Trojans will travel to Kent-Meridian to take on the Lady Royals (0-2, 0-3) at 7:30 p.m. this Thursday… The 1A Auburn Adventist girls improved their record to 3-1 overall with a 38-35 win over Evergreen Lutheran this past Monday at Auburn Adventist Academy. The Falcons will host Bush at 5:45 p.m. this Monday… Caitlin Carr had 15 points in the Auburn Mountainview (2-0, 3-2) girls 59-41 win over Franklin Pierce (0-1, 1-1) on Tuesday. Aalia Braboy added 14 points and Angel Pele chipped in with 11 points. The Lions will host White River (3-0, 2-0) at 7 p.m. this Friday.