An 80-36 win over the Rutland Voodoo Tuesday advanced the Pen High Lakers senior girls basketball team to the AAA Okanagan Valley championship this weekend.
The Lakers ed by nearly 20 points after the first quarter and coach Lesley Lacroix said it was one of their best performances of the season.
“In our other two starts against Rutland we were close in the first quarter and only established a minimal lead by half,” said Lacroix. “It was a standout game for many of my players, Tessa (Lannon-Paakspuu) and Carleigh (Dean) in particular.”
Lannon-Paakspuu racked up 22 points and added five steal with nine assists, while Dean had 14 points and five assists.
“Tessa had her best game of the year in many ways, but in particular her outside shooting,” said Lacroix. “She hit a three-pointer from NBA range, two pop-back jumpers, combined with her usual lay-ups.”
Meanwhile, Dean nailed two important three-pointers that gave her confidence a boost as an outside shooter.
Haylee Robertson netted 21 points and added 12 rebounds. Natasha Reimer had another strong rebounding performance, collecting 23, while adding 13 points.
The Lakers established the large lead with outside shooting. They also forced the Voodoo to commit to Lannon-Paakspuu and Dean’s outside shots to create room for Reimer and Robertson.
Prior to the game, Lacroix saw focus in her group. And for the graduating players, it was meaningful match as it was the last time they played at home.
Heading into the weekend, Lacroix hopes her players have an even-keel confidence. They open the championship hosted by Rutland with a rematch against the NorKam Saints, who beat them at Pen High last weekend. Lacroix expects a tough matchup against the No. 2 seed.
“This last game performance should give them the belief in themselves that they are a well-rounded team that can score in a variety of ways,” added Lacroix, who plans to make some defensive adjustments.
When asked if there is a specific message she gives her players, Lacroix said she constantly refers to last year.
“We went into Valleys third last year as well,” said Lacroix, who group earned a berth into the provincial championship that year.
Only one team from the Okanagan Valley can advance to the provincial championship in Langley.
