SHORELINE — It wasn’t the worst-case scenario, but it definitely wasn’t the best, either, for the Peninsula College men’s basketball team.
The Pirates will have to play one extra game Saturday at Shoreline in order to qualify for the Northwest Athletic Conference tournament.
The Peninsula men lost a heartbreaker 61-58 to Shoreline as a ferocious late rally came up just short.
That loss leaves the Pirates and Dolphins with identical 7-7 records (Peninsula is 14-14 overall) and tied for fourth place in the North Region.
They will play a tiebreaker at Shoreline at 2 p.m. Saturday to decide the No. 4 seed.
“It’s obviously not the ideal way to go, but it’s a winnable game. If we show up and play the way we’re capable of playing, we’ll be fine,” said coach Bryce Jacobson. “We just have to take care of business.”
Jacobson said the Pirates simply didn’t shoot well against Shoreline, and that’s not something that can always be controlled in basketball.
Meanwhile, the Peninsula College women won their 17th straight game, allowing only four points in the fourth quarter in a 52-36 win to finish the regular season 14-0 in the North Region and 21-2 overall.
The Dolphins had to win the men’s game to remain alive for postseason while the Pirates had to win to avoid a play-in game.
Everett advances
Meanwhile, Everett beat Whatcom to avoid a four-way tie. Everett finished the season 8-6 in the North and will be the region’s No. 3 seed. Whatcom at 6-8 was eliminated from the postseason.
The game was close throughout, but the Dolphins were able to build up a 59-48 lead with just 2:26 left. The Pirates rallied, however, going on an 8-0 run in just 1:15 to get to 59-56 with 1:21 left to play, forcing a turnover, an offensive foul and a missed 3-pointer during their run.
Javon Ervin, who led the team with 22 points, scored two baskets during the rally, while Antonio Odum had a basket and DeShawn Rushmeyer hit a pair of free throws.
The Dolphins were finally able to get a foul and two free throws to open the lead back up to 61-56. The Pirates missed two shots and two free throws in the final minute and couldn’t make up the deficit.
“Our guys didn’t hang their heads. They didn’t quit and they gave themselves a chance at the end,” Jacobson said. “I believe in these guys and I think we’ll play better Saturday.”
The Pirates will go into Saturday’s game looking to reverse some struggles down the stretch as Peninsula has lost five out of its last six games.
Aidan Olmstead had one of his best games of the year with 15 points, going 3-for-4 from 3-point range, and pulling down 11 rebounds. Ese Onakpoma struggled from the floor but led the team with 14 rebounds. Odum had nine rebounds to go with six points.
Shoreline 61, Peninsula 58
Peninsula 28 30— 58
Shoreline 33 28— 61
Peninsula (58) — Ervin 22, Olmstead 15, Onakpoma 7, Odum 6, Rushmeyer 6, Dunning 2.
Shoreline (61) — Davis 23, Amaro 12, Cham 8, Smalls 6, Motoshio 4, Williams 3, Collins 3, Nordale 2.
Women go unbeaten
The Peninsula women actually struggled a bit early against Shoreline in a somewhat meaningless playoff tuneup game. The Pirates were up just 23-20 at the end of the first half, then opened up a bit of a lead with a 19-point third quarter to get ahead 42-32, hitting four 3-pointers in the period, including two from Neah Bay’s Allie Greene. They put on the clamps in the fourth, only allowing Shoreline to shoot 2-for-15 from the floor in the final stanza.
The Pirates didn’t shoot great at 28.8 percent but did hit eight 3-pointers and outrebounded Shoreline 34-25. Jenilee Donovan, coming off a record-setting eight 3-pointer performance the game before, hit three 3-pointers for 13 points. She also led the team with nine rebounds.
Ciera Tugabe Agasiva had eight points and five Pirates scored six points.
Peninsula, as the No. 1 seed in the North and the No. 4-ranked team in the NWAC, now sits back and awaits its tournament seeding late Sunday afternoon. The Pirates women have made it to the NWAC final four two straight years, but this year’s squad is a very different freshman-heavy team from the past two years with only Donovan and two other sophomores on the team.
Peninsula 52,Shoreline 36
Peninsula 14 9 19 10 — 52
Shoreline 6 14 12 4 — 36
Peninsula (52) — Donovan 13, Tugade Agasiva 8, Julmist 6, Moananu 6, Mackey 6, Pedebone 6, Greene 6, Suaava 1, Bates, Marini, Vaaia.
Shoreline (36) — Davis 23, Amaro 12, Cham 8, Smalls 6, Motoshio 4, Williams 3, Collins 3, Nordale 2.
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Sports Editor Pierre LaBossiere can be contacted at 360-417-3525 or by email at plabossiere@peninsuladailynews.com.
