Late in the Feb. 6 city championship game between the Whitman Middle School and Denny International Middle School girls basketball teams, the Wildcats drew a charge, throwing fans, players and coaches into a giddy celebration.

It was a fitting scene for the Wildcats, whose tough play and team mentality, led to a perfect regular season, a tear through the playoffs and a 53-33 championship victory.

"It feels really, really good," said Whitman's Nancy MacGeorge, who finished with four points. "We had a good team bond. It was a huge team effort."

Nine different Whitman players scored in the championship game. Imani Bender led the team with 16 points, 10 of them in the fourth quarter to ice the game.

Denny scored first to open the game and took a four-point lead midway through the first quarter. The Wildcats stormed back to take a 13-11 lead to end the quarter and would not trail again.

By halftime the Whitman lead had grown to 13.

In the third quarter, Denny's Myah Williams almost single-handedly kept her team in the game. She caused mayhem for Whitman, forcing turnovers, drawing fouls and shaking defenders.

WIlliams scored 17 of her game-high 21 points in the second half.

Despite Williams' efforts, a balanced Whitman attack only allowed Denny to cut its lead to 11.

Whitman used Bender's offensive tenacity in the fourth quarter to overcome a trio of three-pointers from Williams and put the game away.

Whitman coach Mary Williams said the team was able to pull away from Denny after the first quarter by focusing on boxing out and rebounding.

She also said the team's traps against Williams seemed to work for much of the game.

MacGeoge put it another way.

"We just completely shut down their best player on defense," she said.

Whitman finished the regular season Jan. 28 with a perfect record for the second time in two years before romping through the playoffs with a 60-7 defeat of Orca Feb. 2 and a 48-10 victory over Hamilton Feb. 4.

Whitman lost 61-39 to Meany in last year's championship game.

Mary Williams said it felt amazing and exhilarating to win this year.

Whitman's Makeylah Kirkwood, who finished with eight points, said the team's friendship and ability to work together helped it achieve its goal.

"It feels good," she said. "We've been through so much. It's amazing."

Box Score:

First quarter: Whitman 13 – 11 Denny
Second quarter: Whitman 28 – 15 Denny
Third quarter: Whitman 41 – 23 Denny
Final score: Whitman 53 – 33 Denny

Whitman Wildcats:

#1 Marissa Rowe – 5 pts.
#2 Claudia Morrison – 2 pts.
#3 Tessa Sechler – 5 pts.
#4 Makeylah Kirkwood – 8 pts.
#5 Cailey Beckett – 4 pts.
#7 Beverly Verduin – 0 pts.
#8 Rhiannon Geving – 0 pts.
#9 Shelby Bailess – 7 pts.
#11 Sophie Peck – 2 pts.
#12 Imani Bender – 16 pts.
#13 Nancy MacGeorge – 4 pts.
#14 Maddy McDonald – 0 pts.

CLICK THE PHOTO FOR MORE SHOTS FROM THE GAME.