Coach: ‘This is the best team I’ve ever had’

Published 11:38 am Wednesday, February 25, 2015

KINGSTON — The stats all pointed to the Kingston girls basketball team going to the 2A finals.

They didn’t make it out of districts. The Bucs lost to Fife 42-39 on Feb. 11, but kept their hopes alive by defeating Foster 39-27 on Feb. 13 at Bellarmine Prep. Their title hopes were dashed on Feb. 16 with a 57-51 loss to Franklin Pierce, at Wilson High School.

But to realize what a remarkable season the team had, you’ve got to look at the players.

Senior post Drew Clark led 2A girls basketball players in Washington in rebounds, despite missing the last six games of the year with a torn ACL. She also ranked third in field goal percentage, at 49 percent; fourth in scoring; 13th in blocks, and 13th in steals. She had a career-high 25 rebounds on Jan. 16 vs. North Kitsap.

Senior guard Skyler Bakken ranked fifth in assists, 12th in 3-pointers, and 16th in steals. She scored seven 3s in one game, on Jan. 9 vs. Olympic.

Senior point guard Katelyn Carper ranked second in  assists, eighth in free throws, 10th in 3-pointers, 10th in steals, 11th in scoring, and 16th in field goals.

Junior post Lily Eckert ranked third in blocks, 14th in rebounds, and 18th in field goals.

Guard Avy Hiner ranked 14th in blocks — as a freshman.

Junior guard Aileen Kaye ranked second in 3-pointers, third in assists, eighth in steals, ninth in field goals, and 19th in scoring.

Most of the time, when the Bucs won, they won big and often on the opponent’s court: for example, by 49 (that’s not a typo) over Port Townsend, by 26 at Sequim and North Mason and Bremerton, by 40 at Chimacum.

And when they lost, it was by a hair’s breadth — by 1 to Olympic in the last three seconds of the game and, during the post-season, by 3 to Fife and by 6 to Franklin Pierce.

All told, the Bucs finished the year with a win percentage of .739 — 13-2 league, 17-6 overall, in stats the 11th best team in all of state 2A.

Observers who expected to see the Bucs deeper into the postseason: Nate Andrews, athletic director of rival Olympic High School.

He talked to Clark before the Jan. 30 game at Olympic, three days after she injured her ACL.

“Mentally, it must have been difficult for them to go into that game,” he said of the Bucs. “But they played good enough to win that night. You’re always going to have calls one way or the other,  or a couple of players make a big play, but in that particular game it was such a tight battle. It’s too bad they didn’t get to move on [in the playoffs]. They bring their A game.”

What made this team click?

First, there’s moxie. When Clark went out with injury, she remained a force from the bench, motivating her teammates and giving the coach another set of eyes on the game. (Her torn ACL, for which she had surgery Feb. 24, was her second injury of the season. Earlier, she injured her hip.)

When Carper was injured in a game against North Kitsap, taking a cut above her eye in a collision with an opposing player, she walked bloodied to the sidelines, had the cut bandaged and went right back in. The effect on the other team? “It scared them,” she said.

Here’s Bucs volunteer assistant coach James Getty’s take on the team. “What’s extraordinary is they have perfect attitudes. They listen — they’re sponges. Without those injuries …” He paused; with this team there are no regrets, no “what ifs.”

After Clark tore her ACL and Bakken was out with a concussion, “They all stepped up and said we’re going to keep going. They created a destiny for the underclassmen to step up and fill the void.” (The Bucs went on to defeat Bainbridge 53-37 on Jan. 27, the game in which Clark was injured.)

Second-year head coach Gail Wicklein said the team operates like a family unit. Freshman guard Hiner agrees. “Starting for the first time, it was nerve-wracking,” she said. “But they really supported me.”

Wicklein is an experienced coach, leading the middle school team for nine years and high school JV for four. Of this squad, she said, “This is the best team I’ve ever had,” she said. “They work very hard. They’ve got chemistry. And they never gave up when they lost key players. They kept fighting for each other. They never gave up. ”

This is also a fit team. Players condition six days a week, two of those days with martial arts instructor Todd Norcross. “He helped with stride and strength and conditioning, which has been huge for our team,” Wicklein said.

The team includes other key support personnel. Former Klahowya coach Spike Hopper is an assistant coach. First-year manager Judy Fitzgerald takes care of equipment, makes sure players stay hydrated, and videos each game. Assistant coach Cindy Thompson coaches the JV players.

Clark graduates in June and will play next season for University of Puget Sound. Carper is being recruited by several schools. Bakken is considering options.

Meanwhile, the remaining players are already looking ahead to the 2015-16 season. They’ll go to team camp at Gonzaga at the end of June, then continue to work with Wicklein until July 31. They’ll resume practice on the WIAA-allowed date of Nov. 15.

“We had a great season,” Wicklein said. “I’m really proud of my team. They pushed through it.”