Olin leads furious comeback attempt against No. 1 Bengals
SANDPOINT — For three quarters, it looked like the No. 1 5A team in the state battling an upstart 4A, as Lewiston and Sandpoint squared off in a rare Monday afternoon nonleague girls basketball game at Les Rogers Court.
Then Hailey Olin took the game over in the fourth quarter, leading Sandpoint on a furious comeback, before the Bulldogs (10-6) simply ran out of gas in a 56-46 loss to the top-ranked Bengals.
Olin finished with a game-high 21 points to go with nine rebounds and four assists, including a nine point scoring outburst in a frenetic two minute stretch that cut an 18 point fourth quarter lead down to just three with one minute remaining.
The Bengals (15-1) hit some free throws and a couple of late buckets in the final minute to ice the game and avoid an upset, while the Bulldogs had a couple of good looks from beyond the arc that could have cut the lead to one.
Any coach will tell you there are no moral victories, but Bulldogs head coach Bill Bender loved how his team competed against arguably their toughest foe of the season.
“We simply played together, that’s the key for us. We cut an 18 point lead to three, but couldn’t get that one three to drop. Hailey was huge on the boards,” said Bender, whose team erupted for 21 fourth quarter points. “The kids are excited. They know what they’re capable of for the rest of the season.”
Olin finished 8-11 from the field and 5-7 from the line in a strong shooting display, and Maryah Delgado and Emily Chatburn combined to make five 3-pointers, as each also had several quality looks rim out. Delgado added four assists and three rebounds, and her 3-pointer with a minute left cut the lead to 49-46.
The Bulldogs nearly got the ball right back after it appeared Karlee Williams cleanly blocked a Bengal shot, but the referee whistled for a foul.
Bender praised the play of Madi Schoening, who pushed the pace in transition, setting up some good looks offensively.
“Madi became a facilitator, and it helped us a ton,” said Bender. “The run we made in the third and fourth quarter was from transition; that’s a main tool for us.”
The near-win against the top team in the state illustrated how far Bender has brought the program in his second year.
Lynzee Wilson and Paige Wells each had 14 for Lewiston, which clearly got more of a game than expected.
Sandpoint hosts Lakeland in 4A Inland Empire League clash on Thursday.
Lewiston 12 16 12 16 — 56
Sandpoint 7 9 9 21 — 46
LEWISTON — Weeks 1, Wilson 14, Lohman 3, Schlader 8, Moscrip 2, Wells 14, White 10, Hastings 4.
SANDPOINT — Couch 0, Williams 2, Schoening 4, Liband 0, Olin 21, Chatburn 8, Martin 0, Delgado 11, Sundquist 0.