YAKIMA – Royal was able to make key shots down the stretch and the Knights downed the Lyncs 44-42 in the 1A state tournament.
The loss came just 16 hours after being knocked into the consolation round, and Lynden Christian still wound up with the 5th place trophy.
The Lyncs held the Knights without a single field goal in the entire first quarter, but Royal began the second quarter with a 10-0 run, which was halted by a corner three-pointer by sophomore guard Tyra Dykstra.
Both teams traded hoops throughout the rest of the first half, and the Lyncs led 20-17 at halftime.
LC began the third quarter with a 7-0 run, and Royal finally scored about halfway through the period, and were also able to catch up to the Lyncs much like the second quarter. The Knights ended the third on a 9-2 run.
Another three-ball Dykstra in the fourth quarter gave Lynden Christian a 32-27 lead, but Royal was able to quiet the storm by hitting two quick buckets and get within one point.
The Knights then took their first lead of the game when they buried a three-pointer with 5:20 left in the game.
Twenty seconds later, junior center Jocelyn Eshuis tied it up at 34-34 with a putback under the hoop. A Royal layup gave the Knights the lead once again, but it was answered on the next possession on a three-ball from LC senior guard Ella Fritts, which gave her team a 37-36 lead with 4:10 left.
Royal hit another three-ball to recapture the lead, but it was short-lived as Fritts had an offensive putback to tie the game back up at 39-39 with just under three minutes left to play.
From there, the Lyncs had numerous empty possessions, where the Knights were able to convert when needed.
Lynden Christian was able to make it a little closer at the end after hitting numerous foul shots, but weren’t able to get closer than the final score indicated.
Dykstra finished with 19 points, and Fritts captured yet another double-double in her final high school basketball game with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Fritts also finished her career with an amazing 1261 points scored, which is good for the seventh most in school history.
The Lyncs finished with a record of 23-5.
Royal 44, Lynden Christian 42 ROY 1 16 9 18 - 44 LC 9 11 9 13 - 42
Royal: N/A. Lynden Christian: Fritts 10, T. Dykstra 19, Eshuis 5, Hernandez 0, D. Dykstra 0, Russell 0, VanLoo 0, Pierce 2, DeJong 6.
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