Not even a loss in the final contest of the season could dampen the spirits of Bothell Cougars girls basketball head coach Kent Schaefer.
The Todd Beamer Titans defeated Bothell, 49-41, during the Class 4A girls state tournament third/fifth place game on March 5 at the Tacoma Dome.
“I think fifth place at state is the best our team has done in the history of our school. It is the best that anybody has done in a long, long time. I’m pretty proud of that,” Schaefer said. “We played with composure today and we fought really hard. I don’t think I have been any prouder of the girls at any point of the season than I was today. That was awesome. I’m really happy to be a part of it.”
The Cougars finished the 2015-2016 season with an overall record of 24-3. The Cougars trailed the Titans 38-36 after three quarters of play but were outscored 11-5 during the final eight minutes of regulation. Bothell’s Taya Corosdale recorded a double-double scoring a team-high 17 points and 12 rebounds in the final game of the season against Beamer.
Panthers defeat Cougars in semifinals
The Cougars just ran out of a time against the Snohomish Panthers in the Class 4A semifinals.
Snohomish built a 35-17 lead early in the fourth quarter but saw their lead slowly dwindle down the stretch. Bothell finished the game on a 24-12 run but it wasn’t enough as Snohomish held on for a 47-41 victory on March 4 at the Tacoma Dome.
Bothell’s usually prolific offense was stagnant against Snohomish. Bothell scored just 15 points in the first three quarters before coming alive in the fourth period. The Cougars hit six three-pointers in the final eight minutes of the contest. Snohomish head coach Ken Roberts said seeing Bothell catch fire from the perimeter was a nerve-wracking experience.
“They took a 20-point game all the way down eight all of a sudden. We were a little nervous. That is a credit to them. They played hard,” Roberts said.
Both teams struggled offensively in the first half. Snohomish led Bothell 14-10 at halftime. Snohomish was a woeful 5-for-30 from the field in the first two quarters.
“We missed a lot of really good shots. I told them if we keep getting the shots that we’re getting that we were going to make a run at some point and it happened right out of the gates in the second half,” Roberts said.
Snohomish outscored Bothell 15-5 in the third quarter to take control of the game. Schaefer said his team didn’t have its best day in the semifinals.
“They (Snohomish) outplayed us and took us out of our offense. We never got composed enough to run our stuff,” Schaefer said. “Even the baskets we did make at the end were kind of frantic. We just weren’t disciplined enough today to make it happen.”
