Wolves overcome shaky start to dump Shelton

"With a halftime tie at 22-22 between the South Kitsap High School girls basketball team (2-0) and Shelton last Friday, everyone in the stands found out what SK’s players and coaches already knew:Blowouts will be few and far between this season.“I knew with this group we’re not going to just blow people out,” coach Gary Wilson said. “I think everyone else thinks we are, but there’s going to be games like that where you’ve got to sit down and do a little coaching and do a little gutting it out.”Gut it out is what the Wolves did, as they were able to ward off the pesky Highclimbers with a strong second half en route to a 44-35 victory that was a radical change from the winners’ 90-35 shellacking of Bremerton in the season-opener Nov. 30.For the second consecutive game, senior Beth Ellis tied the SK record for three-pointers in a game with five.She shares the record with former teammate Lindsey Foster.Ellis led all players with 20 points and was her team’s only double-figures scorer.Both teams came out gunning in the first quarter, but a sloppy second quarter led to the low halftime score.SK’s usually solid defense struggled in the first half, forcing Wilson to change the Wolves’ defense to a zone in the second half, which proved to be a smart move. The zone defense limited Shelton to just 13 second-half points.“The intensity picked up a little bit,” Wilson said.Though SK made the adjustments, senior Kristin Boyd said there is still a void on the team while Angela Sampson continues to nurse a sore foot.“We needed Sampson,” Boyd said. “Samp talked to us at halftime and got us hyped up, we got each other hyped up, and then went out and just did it. We’ve been to (the state tournament), we have the experience. We just had to show them.”Though lacking in experience, sophomores Katie Ralph and Rebekah Proctor made an impact on the court.They combined for seven points, but it was their defense that earned praise from Boyd.“Some of our sophomores got in there and did great,” Boyd said. “Ralph did excellent offensively and defensively.”Boyd also praised the play of swing player Hannah Proctor, who has filled in admirably at post for Sampson.“Filling in for post, she knows exactly what to do,” Boyd said. “She just goes in there and does it.”Ellis showed her knack for putting down three-pointers, something she plans to continue the rest of the season.“If I have confidence in anything, I know that’s what it’s going to be,” Ellis said. “That’s something I can contribute to the team. I don’t take it inside much. I try to, but I would rather shoot from out here.”The Wolves next travel to Capitol on Dec. 10 at 7:30 p.m."

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