Spokane Valley schools end Lady Hawks hoop season

The Cheney High girls’ basketball team came up a couple wins short of advancing in last week’s Great Northern League/District 7 playoffs. The fifth-seeded Lady Hawks opened with an upset of fourth-seeded Colville, but couldn’t find the right combination to know off either Spokane Valley 2A schools, falling in the second round to eventual district champion West Valley and eliminated the next day by East Valley.

Cheney played the Knights close, trailing by two points after the end of one quarter, but couldn’t keep contact as East Valley eventually took all four quarters in their 61-42 win last Friday. East Valley was subsequently eliminated the next day by Pullman, who earned the district’s No. 2 seed in this week’s “gluing” tournament with the No. 3 and No. 4 teams from the Central Washington Athletic Conference.

Coreen Labish and senior Darien Brophy led Cheney in scoring with 11 points apiece. Chae Brown added seven before eventually fouling out.

The Lady Hawks ended up in the Friday elimination game via a 48-35 loss to West Valley Thursday. The Lady Hawks had a good night at the free throw line, shooting a season high 78.9 percent – 15 for 19 – but a difficult time from the floor. Brown led Cheney with 11 points while Labish added 10 and Brophy nine.

Cheney advanced to the double-elimination portion of the playoffs with a road upset of Colville last Tuesday night. The Lady Hawks stayed close in the low-scoring game and eventually took a five-point lead in the fourth quarter.

The Indians chopped that to a bucket in the last minute, but missed key free throws and couldn’t turn an inbounds play near their own basket into the typing points in the waning seconds as Cheney hung on for a 35-33 win.

Labish lead all scorers with 14 points while Brown added nine points. Cheney shot 40.7 percent from the field and 61.9 percent from the line.

Brophy had eight of her team’s 27 total rebounds, with Labish grabbing seven. The Lady Hawks committed 11 turnovers but only two in the crucial fourth quarter.

Cheney ends the season with an overall record of 8-14, 4-8 in GNL play. The Lady Hawks lose two seniors, Brophy and Samantha Sheffels, but should return leading scorers Brown and Labish along with a nucleus of younger players with varsity experience.

John McCallum can be reached at jmac@cheneyfreepress.com.