by Ed Shepherd
SPORTS CORRESPONDENT

Chief Sealth International started with a good beat, playing to a 20-16 lead over Ballard after the first two quarters of girls basketball, but, at halftime, something went wrong with the rhythm, as, the team leader for the Seahawks did not come out onto the court in the second half, and, the visiting Beavers came back to win, 43-33, Friday.

The Seahawks dropped to 2-4, overall, and, 1-4 in the Metro League while the Beavers improved to 5-2, and, 3-1.

"Our point guard is having some troubles with the team, team issues, she didn't play in the second half," said Seahawks coach, Katie Jo Maris. "There is a chance, we will finish the season without her. Hopefully, there will come a day she will take time to figure out if she wants to play basketball or not. She has high expectations of herself. She has trouble believing in her team. It's too bad she has these problems, she's the sweetest girl off the floor. And, it's rough on us, because she's such a good player."

So, that leadership player's absence in the third and fourth quarters put the onus of point guard duties on Labrea Denson, a 5-3 sophomore. And, that's a tough spot to be in for any young player not normally playing that point guard spot to jump in there and orchestrate the offense.

So, the string music in the first half for the Seahawks, which included coming back from a 10-8 deficit after the first quarter, to lead, 20-14, with a minute left in the second quarter on the second-half, absent player's two free throws, became thoroughly muted in the second half.

In the last two eight-minute quarters of the game, the Seahawks were outscored, 27-13, by the Beavers, and, broken down by quarters, it was a 12-7 disadvantage in the third, and, a 15-6 out-scoring bulge in the fourth.

The score changed quickly, in the first minute of the third quarter ,as back-to-back buckets by the Beavers tied the score, 20-20, before the Seahawks' got temporary reprieve when Denson drove the lane, was fouled, and, made 1-for-2 free throws at the line. That effort gave the Seahawks a slight edge, 21-20, with 6:00 left in the third quarter.

From there, though, the Beavers scored again, on 5-11, post, Stella Sohl's inside lay-up, taking the lead, 22-21.Then, the Beavers took over possession of a Denson turnover, and, another tall player, the Beavers' tallest, 6-3, forward, Madison Asher, scored inside, upping her team's lead to 24-21.
Denson then helped her team's cause, again, with a long jumper, cutting the Beavers' lead to 24-23. But, Sohl scored again for the foe, and, it was, 26-23, Beavers, and, another Denson turnover, and, an Asher rebound and score happened next, so, 28-23.

"Making decisions on the floor at the point is something new to Labrea," said Coach Maris. "She's a shooting guard. And, she didn't start playing basketball until seventh grade. But, she can, definitely, handle the pressure, and, she is one of the best ball handlers on the team."
Denson, who led her team, and, all scorers from the Beavers, too, ending with a game-high 18 points, scored the Seahawks next points, a three-ball, too, from behind the arc, chopping the Beavers' five-point lead to two, 28-26, with 2:38 left in the third quarter.

But, the Beavers kept paddling toward victory, continuing to score, with a driving lay-up foul on the way to the hoop that resulted in a free throw for the foe, upping the lead to 29-26. And, finishing off the quarter, the Beavers' Asher scored inside, off another Seahawks' Denson turnover, making it, 31-26.

"They knew to put more pressure on me, every time I went to the middle, they were trapping," said Denson.
In the fourth quarter, for the Seahawks, things just went from bad to worse, as, the Seahawks committed three turnovers in the first 1:30 of play, and, four turnovers, in the first 2:00. So, four turnovers in two minutes is not going to ever be a positive sign for a team's winning chances. And, the Beavers took advantage of that fact, and, contributed to that happening with a hounding defense, too, to their credit.
The Beavers led, 36-29 on 5-10 forward, Pauline Bernbom, making shot close in, with 4:19 to go in the fourth.

Then, back-to-back turnovers by the Seahawks, pretty much, nullified any hopes for a rally against the Beavers, as, the foe's lead went to 38-31 with two minutes left. And, the worst point-difference in the game, the final score, came from Sohl's 2-for-2 free throw shooting with 30 seconds.

Denson may be the one that must lead this team and she says that she can do it, if she has to, but it's going to take time to learn the intricacies of the point guard position.

"I've learned that I can break the press going through the middle because then the sides are open," said Denson. "I just need to pass, attack more, as, doing those things draws players in."

The coach, Maris, knows what her second-half, absent, point guard leader means to the team.
"I don't have captains, but she leads the floor," said Maris.

But, if going without her is how its going to be for Maris and her team, then, this team needs to realize that they have to do that, and, make do.

"We are working to get chemistry still," said Denson. "Coach said for us not to hang our heads after the game."

And, Denson knows where her head needs to be during the game.

"I need to look up when I'm dribbling, see the floor better," she said.

Maris liked her team's efforts, just she had no real choice but to re-state the theme of things, with the point guard needing to be in there and deciding if she wants to be on the floor with her teammates, or, not. That will greatly enhance her team's chances of having a positive Metro season that is still with the bulk of games to be played after the holiday break time.

"I think, we played hard," said Maris. "If we had all of our players in there, my point guard, the outcome would have been different. They were heartbroken when she didn't come out for the second half."
So, some time off, and, maybe, that is exactly what this Seahawks team needs to get itself regrouped and going in a better direction for the rest of the season.

"We have a break now for holidays, and, then, a lot of practice coming in January," said Maris.
And games coming, too, the bulk of the Metro season is played in January and February. Hopefully, those games will be wins.

And, Denson seemed enthused, still, about this season, as, it wasn't just turnovers that hurt, other things, too, like 0-4 three-point shooting, for example.
"We are going to be working on a lot of things in practice," said Denson. "I have to work on getting the ball to my bigs."

One of those big players, sophomore, Sydney Thomas, was a definite positive out there for the Seahawks as she scored five points in a row for her team midway through the second quarter, on 4-for-6 free throw shooting, and, a bucket inside, that gave the Seahawks a 16-12 lead, then. So, some things to build on, some things to work on, for the Seahawks, and, a team that just needs to understand things happen, sometimes, in life, sometimes, even, on the court, not perfect things, that frustrate a player, a team, a coach. And, after that's understood, it's time to get together and move on, positively, with each other.
"I am trying to change the culture of the team," said Maris.

For the Seahawks scoring in the game, besides, Denson, with her game-high 18 points, teammate, Elliott Snodgrass, scored seven points, getting her team off to a good start with the opening basket of the game, and, another score after that shortly, for four in the first quarter. And, Thomas ended with six. For the Beavers, Sohl had 12, and, Asher, 11.