Pirates champs at high tide

Heading into this girls basketball season, Prairie coach Lori Mader had gone 12 consecutive years watching her Pirates of Cottonwood fall to the Lapwai Wildcats in the district final.

Events on Wednesday at Lewiston High School might suggest that 13 is her lucky number — though more than luck factored into the outcome of the Pirates’ 2A Whitepine League district tournament championship game against the Wildcats.

Prairie topped Lapwai with an emphatic 68-49 scoreline, clinching its first district title since 2012.

“It felt super nice to finally beat Lapwai (in a district final),” the Pirates’ Sage Elven said.

Pirates right the ship

Determined not to let its dynasty end, Lapwai stormed out at the opening with a series of fast-break plays, leading almost continuously through the first quarter and twice pulling ahead by as many as seven points. The energy seemed to be with the Wildcats, both on the court and among the spectators, many of whom waved blue balloons while a large Lapwai cheerleading squad complete with pom-poms lined one end of the hardwood floor.

It was not long, however, before the top-seeded Pirates righted the ship. Prairie made three free throws to close the gap to 17-13 in the last 30 seconds of the first quarter — and the Pirates had already recorded 10 attempts from the foul line by the end of the frame. They converted only five of those opportunities, but it was an early sign of foul trouble that would plague the Wildcats the rest of the way.

Prairie flipped the script in the second quarter, starting on the opening play when Emma Wells knocked a ball loose and Lexi Schumacher scooped it up to drive across the court for a layup. That bucket made it a one-possession game at 17-15.

Prairie would go on a tear with 11 of the first 12 points in the second quarter to pull ahead 24-18, electrifying a Pirate fanbase visually distinguishable by a smattering of red styrofoam gloves featuring index fingers upraised and inscribed with the declaration that their team was “No. 1!”

Lapwai found one more run with an Andraeana Domebo free throw, a fast-break layup from Ella Payne and a Domebo 3 from the corner to tie things back up at 24 apiece with a little over two minutes remaining in the first half.

A swift Prairie response saw Elven rattle off five straight points and Lexi Schumacher drive in another layup for a 31-24 halftime advantage — and as it turned out, Prairie would never again let Lapwai back within two possessions. The Pirates led by as many as 20 points in the second half, during which the Wildcats continued to battle gamely, but simply could not find the spark they needed to get back in the game.

Lapwai’s Amasone George fouled out late while multiple teammates sat on the brink at four fouls, with the final shots of the game fittingly coming from two Lexi Schumacher trips to the foul line in the closing 20 seconds of play.

The Pirates leapt up and down and embraced after the final buzzer sounded. Mader could be seen wiping away tears of joy.

Postgame breakdown

Prairie outrebounded Lapwai 47-34, capitalizing on its superior height, with the likes of Elven and Kylie Schumacher standing 5-foot-10 where the Wildcats’ tallest is Oatman at 5-9.

Lexi Schumacher led all scorers with 23 points, while her cousin Kylie Schumacher (14 points, 16 rebounds) and Elven (21 points, 11 boards) both notched double-doubles.

“We did a good job kind of slowing the tempo down, limiting our turnovers and just trying to control the boards,” Mader said. “That was key for us.”

For the Wildcats, Bisbee scored a team-high 12 points, with Domebo (10 points, 10 rebounds) and Oatman (10 points, 11 boards) recording their own double-doubles.

In spite of breaking a streak of more than a decade in Lapwai’s favor, this outcome was not considered an upset, as Prairie had earned the top seed for the tournament after winning the regular-season 2A Whitepine League title. The teams had split meetings during that league campaign, each prevailing on its respective home court.

Mader’s Pirates have faced Lapwai in the district final all 15 seasons since she started the job, with this being their second victory. She attributes both programs’ long-term consistency to the large families in their respective communities that continue to raise up quality high school players.

“I’m ever-thankful to the Prairie for the big families,” Mader said. “I’m also one of nine kids, so we love them.”

Up next

Lapwai is back in action facing Kamiah in a state play-in game today at 6 p.m. back at Lewiston High.

“I told the girls, ‘Short memory,’” Lapwai coach Josh Leighton said. “This is over, and we can’t do anything about it regardless of what went on within the game. Tomorrow’s really what matters.”

Prairie advances to the Idaho Class 2A state tournament to be held Thursday through Saturday of next week at Columbia High School in Nampa. In power rankings compiled by Maxpreps.com and idahosports.com, the Pirates sit second only to southern Idaho’s Oakley Hornets (21-1), who dealt them an early-season nonleague defeat.

“Super proud of the kids, and it’s a good time to start bringing everything together and bringing the team together, so hopefully we keep our focus for next week and bring home that banner,” Mader said. “That’s the goal.”

LAPWAI (19-4)

Charlize Kipp 0 0-0 0, Ella Payne 1 0-0 2, Amasone George 1 2-6 4, Skylin Picard 1 5-5 7, Andreana Domebo 4 1-2 10, Lois Oatman 4 2-2 10, Cavell Samuels 0 0-0 0, Junee Picard 1 1-2 4, Jennilia WhiteTemple 0 0-0 0, Madden Bisbee 5 1-2 12. Totals 17 10-17 49.

PRAIRIE (20-2)

Lexi Schumacher 7 9-14 23, Aubree Rehder 0 0-0 0, Sydney Shears 0 0-2 0, Hailey Hanson 3 0-0 8, Nadia Cash 0 2-2 2, Ellie Nuxoll 0 0-0 0, Sage Elven 7 7-12 21, Kylie Schumacher 4 6-10 14. Totals 21 24-40 68.

Lapwai 17 7 8 17—49

Prairie 13 18 18 19—68

3-point goals — Oatman 2, Domebo, Ju. Picard, Bisbee, Hanson 2.

Wendt may be contacted at (208) 848-2268, or cwendt@lmtribune.com.