CHIMACUM — Chimacum’s boys and girls basketball teams picked up a rare sweep of rival Port Townsend in an old-fashioned Quimper Quarrel doubleheader.
In Wednesday’s opener, the Chimacum girls held down the Redhawks 40-31 for the team’s first victory over their rivals since a 32-20 win during the 2009-10 season.
“I know it’s my first win against Town,” third-year Cowboys coach Trevor Huntingford said. “And Brad Burlingame [who preceded Huntingford as coach] didn’t get one in his two years.
“The girls were thrilled and it’s nice to string together a couple of wins.”
The crowd that filled the Cowboys’ recently remodeled gymnasium also witnessed the Chimacum boys holding off a late Redhawks rally to win 49-47.
“It’s always good to get a win, but we really need to tighten up how we play late in games,” Cowboys coach Jim Eldridge said.
Both boys teams entered the contest winless, and each came out firing in a fast-paced first quarter.
David Sua scored eight of his 12 points to push Port Townsend to a 15-13 lead after one period.
The teams’ offensive pace slowed in the second quarter and the lead changed hands three times, the most important coming seconds before intermission with the Redhawks up 21-19 after consecutive buckets from junior guard Patrick Charlton.
Chimacum forced a turnover and had the ball inbounds on its baseline with 2.4 seconds before halftime.
The long pass into the halfcourt drew a crowd from each team and resulted in a loose-ball foul that sent Chimacum’s Matt Koening to the free-throw line with 0.4 seconds left.
Koening hit his first freebie but his second bounced off the rim and into the hands of a rising John Carthum.
Carthum tapped the ball in the basket for a 22-21 Chimacum lead at the break.
“There are countless plays that impact the outcome of a ball game,” Port Townsend coach Tom Webster said.
“We can point to that little boneheaded stretch, or Seren Dances’ 3-pointer being counted for two [at the end of the first quarter], and that’s three or four points that would have gotten us the win.”
“But Chimacum, I’m sure, can say the same for some plays on their end.
“We are starting two freshmen, and the team’s learning, and that’s just how it goes.”
The game seesawed back and forth in the third quarter with four lead changes and three ties before the Cowboys made their run.
Down 31-28 after Port Townsend’s Chris Adkins made a 3-point basket with 2:07 left in the third, and with 6-foot-5 post Orion Weller on the bench with four fouls, Chimacum closed the third and opened the fourth quarter on an 11-0 run keyed by strong play from reserve Lane Dotson for a 39-31 lead with 7:45 to play.
Another Adkins 3-pointer on the next possession pulled Port Townsend within 39-34.
After a two-minute dry spell was broken when Adkins drove the lane and slipped a no-look pass inside to Sua for a layup and a one-possession deficit.
The Cowboys rebuilt their lead to 46-39 with 1:39 to play thanks to a corner 3-point splash from Koening and free throws from Victor Hitt and Carthum.
But the Redhawks wouldn’t rest, with Adkins, Port Townsend’s lone senior, willing the team back within one possession with made free throws and a 3-point bomb from NBA range to make it 48-45 Chimacum with 28.9 seconds left.
Adkins scored 16 points, all in the second half, to lead all scorers.
Jacob Ralls, an All-Olympic League defensive back for the Redhawks football team, showed his coverage skills on the ensuing inbounds pass, deflecting the ball to Adkins, who then found Ralls for an open look at the tying 3-pointer.
The shot found rim, however, and Chimacum’s James Porter knocked in a free throw to give the Cowboys (1-0, 1-5) some breathing room and, eventually, the victory.
Weller finished with 10 points to lead a balanced Chimacum offense. John Carthum added eight and Quinn Dowling had seven points.
The Cowboys will face Neah Bay at Port Townsend’s Crush in the Slush Tournament at Port Townsend High School on Friday, Dec. 26.
Port Townsend (0-1, 0-5) hosts Friday Harbor in the Crush that same day.
Chimacum 49, Port Townsend 47
Port Townsend 15 6 10 16— 47
Chimacum 13 9 14 13— 49
Individual scoring
Port Townsend (47)
Adkins 16, Sua 12, Kelsall 5, Dances 4, Parcher 4, Charlton 4, Ralls 2.
Chimacum (49)
Weller 10, Carthum 8, Dowling 7, Bainbridge 6, Hitt 5, Dotson 5, Koenig 4, Porter 4.
Girls Basketball
Chimacum 40, Port Townsend 31
Big scoring from the Nisbet sisters, Shanya in the first half and Mechelle in the second, propelled the Cowboys to a hard-earned win against the Port Townsend girls.
Shanya Nisbet was aggressive in driving to the rim in the second quarter, scoring six straight points, eight in the half, as Chimacum went up 13-7 at the break.
She finished with 11 points.
Mechelle Nisbet tallied 17, including 13 after halftime.
“I was telling [assistant coach] Mike [Dowling] that was the biggest, but also the most uneasy six-point lead I’ve ever had, “ Huntingford said.
“It felt like we were comfortably ahead, and six points is just not enough to feel like that.”
The Redhawks suited up just seven varsity players for the game but went into a half-court trapping defense coming out of the locker room.
The pressure defense worked to start the quarter, with baskets from Jenna Carson, Kassie Olin and Kaitlyn Meek helping Port Townsend tie the score at 15-all with 4:51 to go in the third.
“I let the girls know that I expected we would get their absolute best shot to start the third quarter,” Huntingford said.
“Port Townsend brought that, but we were able to kind of weather that push and regroup.”
After figuring out how to break the Redhawks’ press, Mechelle Nisbet scored eight of Chimacum’s next 12 points in the quarter as the Cowboys (1-0, 2-3) pulled to a 27-19 advantage heading into the final frame.
Then, with each team in the bonus foul-wise, a steady march to the free throw line began for both teams.
A total of 39 free throws were attempted in the fourth quarter, with Chimacum hitting 7 of 22 and Port Townsend making 8 of 17 attempts.
Freshman Kaitlyn Meek hit a foul shot to pull the Redhawks within 31-26 with 3:40 to play, but Port Townsend would come no closer.
“We knew that Port Townsend would need to muddy up the game and make it tough for us,” Huntingford said.
“They did that pretty well, but we really rewarded them by sending them to the line so many times. That’s something we need to work on, recognizing the need to not make fouls when we just don’t need them.”
Port Townsend coach Jeanne King continues to be encouraged by the play of her young team.
“I’m so proud of their effort tonight,” King said. “I’ve never had a team that supports each other like this and works so hard.”
Meek led the Redhawks (0-1, 0-5) with 10 points. Senior Frances Sheldon-O’Neal had nine points, most coming from a sweet touch at the free-throw line.
“Her enthusiasm tonight really pushed the younger girls,” King said.
Port Townsend visits Vashon on Saturday, and the two rivals will be back in action at the Crush in the Slush Tournament at Port Townsend High School on Friday, Dec. 26.
Chimacum faces Neah Bay and Port Townsend hosts Nooksack Valley.
Chimacum 40, Port Townsend 31
Port Townsend 3 4 12 12— 31
Chimacum 7 6 14 13— 40
Individual scoring
Port Townsend (40)
Meek 10, Sheldon-O’Neal 9, Snyder 4, Carson 4, Olin 2, Nielsen 2.
Chimacum (31)
M. Nisbet 17, S. Nisbet 11, Snyder 7, Yaley 3, Castillo 2.
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Sports reporter Michael Carman can be contacted at 360-452-2345, ext. 5250 or at mcarman@peninsualdailynews.com.
