News

Dec 2, 2009
by Charlie Pieterick

The Vashon High School Pirates boys’ basketball team began their quest to defend their state championship gold ball with a convincing win. On Wednesday, they suffocated the Seattle Academy Cardinals, 66-23.

It took 4 clicks of the clock to put the first three Pirate points on the board. Post player John Gage controlled the opening tip to Quinn Holert, who found Matt Kerns slashing to the hoop for two. Fouled on the shot, Kerns then sunk the resulting free-throw. These 3 senior starters, along with senior point guard Elias Weston and junior wingman Alex Wegner, preyed on an inexperienced and much smaller Cardinal team to build a 21-0 lead by midquarter. Pirate coach Andy Sears took advantage of the opportunity to cycle in his bench players, giving them an early seasoning of valuable game time.

Taking no Cardinal prisoners, the impressive Pirates (ranked number one in the preseason 1-A polls) went into the locker room at the half with a 44-8 margin. Continuing their pillaging ways coming out of the half, Holert stole the Cardinals’ opening inbound pass. Dropping back into a more relaxed half-court stance, the Pirates put up a 13-2 third period margin which was marked by 9 bench points, including a put-back and follow up 3 pointer by sophomore Dan Lofland. Junior Hamzah Griffen showed his toughness under the boards, putting up 8 points in the second half on muscle plays. Sears turned the Pirate man o’ war entirely over to his young bench in the fourth period, who brought it capably back to port.

Pirate points vs Seattle Academy:
Hamzah Griffen 8, Lofland 7, Weston 7, Wegner 6, Christian Hasson 4, Holert 4, Corey Williamson 2, Gage 15, Kerns 13, Jesse Hazzard, Tyler Stoffer.