PORT ANGELES — The Peninsula College men’s basketball team is headed to the NWAACC Tournament to defend its title as the No. 2 seed after holding off Bellevue 86-84 on Saturday night.
It was standing-room only as Peninsula College fans packed the Pirate gym to watch the North Division finale matching the NWAACC’s fifth-ranked Pirates against sixth-ranked Bellevue — and it was quite a show.
With the student section on its feet and Bellevue leading 84-83, Tyler Funk found Daniel Sims open under the basket and the freshman from Gold Coast, Australia, put it in for an 85-84 Pirate lead with 32 seconds to go.
The Pirate defense came up with a stop and Bellevue was forced to foul.
Dudley Ewell hit the second of two free throws and it was an 86-84 Peninsula lead with five seconds to go that held up.
With the huge crowd hanging on every move, the Bulldogs got off a shot with time running out and the Pirates emerged with a victory — and the No. 2 seed into the 2012 NWAACC Basketball Championships.
Peninsula (23-4) will open against Clackamas (16-10) at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Toyota Center in Kennewick in Game 1 of the 16-team, four-day NWAACC Tournament.
The two teams met in the championship game of the Clackamas Tournament back on Dec. 30 when the Pirates came away with a 85-65 victory.
Saturday’s game against Bellevue is one fans will be talking about for some time.
It featured high-flying dunks, 12 lead changes, 15 ties and some calls by the officials that had fans from both sides buzzing.
Sophomore post DeShaun Freeman wrapped up his home career at Peninsula with another double-double (24 points and 10 rebounds) while Sam Waller had 20 points, including an 8 for 9 free-throw effort.
Funk was 3 for 4 from 3-point range, and finished with 11 points and seven assists.
Corey Clement, normally an inside workhorse, broadened his range, going 2 for 2 from beyond the arc to finish with 11 while Peninsula’s leading scorer, J.T. Terrell, was held to 10 points,.
And Sims had perhaps his best night as a Pirate, contributing eight points, six assists and some outstanding effort on defense.
It was the final home game for nine Peninsula sophomores, including Chris Buchanan, Clement, Ewell, Freeman, Tim Friday, Funk, Jordan Rawls, Terrell and Waller.
They were honored in a brief ceremony prior to tip-off.
The men’s and women’s basketball teams will leave campus for the long trip to Kennewick on Thursday afternoon, time to be determined.
Women’s Basketball
Bellevue 56, Peninsula 48
PORT ANGELES — The Peninsula College women suffered a heartbreaking loss to the North Division’s second-place Bellevue Bulldogs on Saturday night, leaving the Pirates in a tie for third place with Whatcom — and a No. 4 seed to the 2012 NWAACC Basketball Championships by virtue of a tiebreaker.
The Peninsula women (17-9), who will make their first appearance at the NWAACC Tournament in four years and only their fifth playoff appearance in the college’s 15-year history, will open against South Division champion Lane (23-4) on Saturday at 4 p.m. in Game 2 of the 16-team, four-day tournament at the Toyota Center in Kennewick.
A jam-packed Pirate crowd showed its appreciation for head coach Alison Crumb, a Port Angeles native, for her team’s success this year, despite the tearful finish on “Sophomore Night.”
The Pirates played their hearts out against Bellevue, building a 31-27 lead at halftime, but they struggled offensively in the second half, scoring only 17 points against a tenacious Bulldog defense.
Taylor Larson led the Pirates with 16 points while Jasmine Yarde finished with eight points and a team-leading eight rebounds.
Tia Mason finished with six points and three steals while Karli Brakes contributed four points, five assists and four steals.
The Bellevue women did a nice job defending Jesse Ellis, holding the athletic guard to just three points.
Ellis did, however, pull down seven rebounds and add five assists.
Sophomores Ashley Manker, Callie Monfrey and Megan Smith, who made their final home appearance as Pirates, were honored during a ceremony.