Vikings off to round of 12

PALOUSE — Entering the WIAA 1B basketball state tournament as the number 12 overall seed, the Garfield-Palouse Vikings girls basketball team knocked off the number 13 overall seed, Pateros, to advance to the round of 12.

The game was played on Saturday, Feb. 14, and took place in Cheney.

Garfield-Palouse scored 11 points in both the first and second quarters, then exploded for 30 second-half points to secure the 52-36 victory.

After the first, the Vikings held a one-point lead as they held Pateros to 10 points.

During the second quarter, the Vikings defense held Pateros to just nine points. Garfield-Palouse would take a 22-19 lead into the second half.

The third quarter was the best quarter for both the Vikings offense and defense. Garfield-Palouse scored 16 points and held Pateros to seven to take a commanding 38-26 lead with a quarter to play.

After the third, the Vikings added 14 points in the fourth, holding Pateros to 10 to secure the 16-point victory.

Garfield-Palouse were led by their usual dominators all season. Elena Flansburg scored 18 points on seven made field goals. She also made three free throws, and grabbed eight rebounds.

Kyra Brantner had 14 points on five made field goals, which all were two-point field goals. She made four free throws as well.

Defensively, Brantner grabbed six rebounds and had four steals.

Sophomore Morgan Lentz was the third double-digit scorer for the Vikings in the game. She finished with 10 points, including two three-point shots.

As a team, Garfield-Palouse grabbed 39 rebounds and had 10 steals and three blocks.

With the win, the Vikings advanced to the round of 12.

All round of 12 games were played on Wednesday, Feb. 28, with the winners of each game advancing to the quarterfinal round on Thursday, Feb. 29, and the losers heading home.

The Vikings will take on the number five overall seeded Almira-Coulee-Hartline. All 1B games from here on out will be played in the Spokane Arena. The Vikings game started at 7:15 p.m.

Look for the results from the game on the Whitman County Gazette website Thursday.