By Bucky Beaver
Boys (7-6, 5-3 in conference)
You have to bring your “A” game every night in Kingco, arguably the toughest league in the state. Especially when you are on the road. The Boys Beavers basketball team started out hot Tuesday night at Newport High School, but quickly cooled off. Newport took the lead about halfway through the first quarter and never looked back. Newport was hot all night with a couple of players having career nights. Ballard could never get closer than 8 to 10 points the rest of the evening. The team shot just 32% from the field. Final score was Knights 60 and Beavers 47. Junior Seth Berger led the Beavers in scoring with 17 points and 12 rebounds. Juniors Stuart MacGeorge added 8 points and Nate Rauda added 6 points and 3 steals.
Girls (3-10, 2-6 in conference)
The Lady Beavers came out very cold Wednesday night at home against the Newport Knights. The Beavers shot just 19% from the floor in the first half getting down 11 points at the half. The Beavers, led by sophomore Cailey Beckett, came out hot to start the second half. They outscored the Lady Knights 12 to 2 in the third quarter to pull within 1 point after 3 quarters. The game was close throughout the 4th quarter and the Beavers had a couple of opportunities at the end to pull off the upset, but they ended up short losing 41 to 39 to the Knights. The Beavers out-rebounded the Knights by 11 and had their lowest number of turnovers of the season. Cailey Beckett lead the team in scoring with 21 points. Sophomore Nancy MacGeorge had a double-double with 11 points and 13 rebounds. (Photo of Cailey Beckett courtesy Alan Russo, Ballard Athletics.)
Big night Friday night for both the girls and boys teams as the Roosevelt Roughriders invade Ballard. Varsity girls play at 6:30 and varsity boys play at 8:00. Both games have big playoff implications for the Beavers. Ballard will also be unveiling new banners funded by a donation from the Ballard High School Foundation. Come early for your seat—should be a very big crowd Friday night.
