Raymond girls battle Montesano

"The game was hard. It is a very physical game when you play Montesano," said Seagull power forward Aiysha Garcia, "I did get a couple of fouls."

And what Garcia is taking about is the under the basket play that teams have to manage when in a contest against the Bulldogs and sophomore Jordan Spradlin.

"I have learned to recognize how they are coming at me - and as soon as I have got the defense down, I try to push it away from me," tells Spradlin about her season being double and triple teamed. "Tonight it was like everyone coming to the ball during the game."

The Seagulls were able to keep pace with the Bulldogs for three quarters of the game closing out each period either tied or within one basket.

"They are one of the top teams in the 1A, especially coming off that game with Willapa Valley, we wanted to show that we could compete at this level," said Raymond head coach Jon Schray.

"This was a true team win, a very physical game," noted Montesano coach Julie Graves.

The Bulldogs though missing a couple of players due to other commitments were able to keep up their winning ways and notch another win as they lead the 1A Evergreen League. Raymond, which is still in the race to finish in the top of the 2B Pacific League, used this non-league game as a gauge for their court game.

"We knew our opponent and we were just focused on our mental preparation for this game against Montesano. We knew that it absolutely was going to be a fight and wanted to show that we could compete with them," said Schray.

The loss, 50-42, did prove to the Raymond squad that they could keep up with the 1A team and helps them get ready for the end of the season push.

And when the opposing coach calls a player out by name you know that you have made an impression.

"We just could not stop Karlee Freeman during one stretch. We talked about making sure that we closed out trying to force her out," commented coach Graves.

With their final home game against Tacoma Baptist on Jan. 30, the Lady Seagulls will finish their season on the road with South Bend on Feb. 4 and Ilwaco on Feb. 6 just prior to the start of District IV play.

"We are ready as a team for the rest of the season. It's just one game at a time," finished Garcia.