Lehi Sports
Pioneer girls win hoops tourney title
Beky Beaton / Lehi Free Press
The Lehi High School girls basketball team won the three-day Southern Classic Tournament on Saturday (Dec. 6) in Cedar City. The Pioneers also posted a win over Timpview prior to hitting the road and have now rolled to a 7-0 record on the season.
Dec. 2: Lehi 57, Timpview 37
The Pioneers jumped out to a big lead over the Thunderbirds with a 22-10 advantage in the first quarter. The other three periods were much closer, but the visitors were never able to climb out of the hole.
Senior forward Madi Andrews led the way with 22 points including six triples with 10 rebounds for a double-double plus three assists and four steals for an impressive overall outing.
Seven other players also contributed to the scoring. Senior forward Madi Ogden added seven points and junior forward Paisley Worthen had six. Senior guard Brynlee Cook scored six with four boards and a couple of assists.
Sophomore post Kelcee Rasmussen provided four points, five rebounds, two assists, a steal and two blocked shots in an active effort. Junior guard Hayden Warren made eight assists to go with three boards while sophomore guard Cali Ashton and freshman guard Brinley Sorensen had five points each.
“This was a great defensive game for us to finish out the opening homestand we’ve had,” said Coach Sean Seastrand. “We played solid defense all night and got into a scoring rhythm early that set us up nicely to keep the lead.
“We’re looking forward to getting in some road games and being tested there,” he added.
Dec. 4: Lehi 72, Sky View 35
The Pioneers were hitting on all cylinders in the game against the Bobcats, making half their shots, canning 11 treys and making 18 assists on their way to a big victory in the first game of the tournament at Pine View. They converted 72 percent of their tries inside the circle.
Lehi led 23-3 at the end of the initial period and the lead continued to build from there. Four players scored in double figures beginning with Andrews, who tallied 21 with five triples, five rebounds, three assists and three steals in another great effort.
Rasmussen added 17 points shooting 80 percent with four boards, three steals and a block, Cook scored 16 with four rebounds, four assists and two steals, while Ashton had 11 points including three treys with four boards. Warren had six assists and four rebounds.
“We came out rolling early and jumped into a big lead,” Seastrand said. “Once again, our defense was key for us. Offensively, this was our best outing of the season so far.”
Dec. 5: Lehi 37, Pine View 27
The Pioneers had a tough time getting going in their second game, this one against the host school Panthers, and trailed until late in the third quarter before rallying down the stretch to get the hard-fought win.
Andrews hit three triples and finished with 12 points, three rebounds and four steals while Cook posted 11 points with seven boards and six steals in the contest. Rasmussen added six points, 11 rebounds and two blocks. Warren had six points, five boards and three assists.
“I’m super proud of this win because it was our first time being down really,” Seastrand said. “Shots weren’t falling. Whistles weren’t going our way. It was a true road game against a solid Pine View team.
“We were down early and down late in the third, but our defense rallied and kept them under 30 points. It was a really tough win by our group to fight through some adversity,” the coach added.
Dec. 6: Lehi 75, Crimson Cliffs 30
The Pioneers finished their road swing with another dominant victory in the event title contest. They held the Mustangs to single-digit scoring in every period and extended their 25-6 first-quarter advantage throughout the game.
Cook shot 50 percent from the floor and was perfect from the free-throw line, finishing with 18 points and three rebounds. She was named the Southern Classic Tournament MVP. Andrews was named to the All-Tournament team.
Sorensen bagged 14 points and three boards. Worthen had a big outing with 13 points, seven rebounds and two blocks while Ashton had a near double-double with 13 points and nine boards plus three steals.
Warren garnered six rebounds and nine assists. Rasmussen had seven points, seven boards, three assists and a block.
“It’s always fun to win a championship of any tournament,” Seastrand said. “Our girls came out on fire and playing great defense as usual. We had very balanced scoring from our team tonight and the ball was flying around for open looks.
“I’m proud of the way we played three road games in a row with energy,” the coach concluded.
The Pioneers host Mountain Ridge on Wednesday (Dec. 10) before playing a couple of contests in this weekend’s Holiday Hoopfest. Lehi is scheduled to play Westlake at 6 p.m. on Friday (Dec. 12) and Rigby (ID) on Saturday (Dec. 13) at 6 p.m.
The Pioneer boys will play immediately after the girls at 7:30 p.m. both days.
