Short-handed La Conner wins at Friday Harbor

They had to shuffle their lineup, but a league hoops triumph was still in the cards for the La Conner High School Lady Braves at Friday Harbor Saturday afternoon.

Minus two starters, including Skagit County leading scorer Ellie Marble, the visitors dealt the hosts a lopsided 76-31 NW1B/2B defeat.

Seniors Makayla Herrera and Josie Harper each matched Friday Harbor's team point total with career best 31-point outings.

Herrera's point production included her first two perimeter treys of the season, with the 6'-2" center a perfect two-for-two.

She added a team high 11 rebounds while Harper, who slid down from her normal point guard position to play in the post, recorded 10 steals.

Lady Braves senior Kennedy Miller also had a big day at Turnbull Gym, scoring a personal best 12 points.

Freshman guard Shaniquah Casey, asked to take over point guard duties, rounded out the attack with two points.

But that was just part of the story for Casey, according to head coach Joe Harper.

"We didn't miss a beat as Shaniquah had 12 assists and played fantastic defense all afternoon," Harper told the Weekly News afterward.

Another freshman, Izzy Villard, stepped up by recording three assists for the victors.

Marble, a Central Washington University volleyball recruit, was not available for La Conner (9-3 overall; 2-1 in league) as she was in Eugene, Oregon for the Matt Hartner Memorial Tournament, one of the West Coast's premier club volleyball events.

The Lady Braves were also without Maeve McCormick, who was on an overseas family trip.

Despite these key absences, Friday Harbor (1-2 in NW1B/2B standings) had only an outside shot at an upset. But the visitors, in fact, mastered the outside shot on Saturday, meshing eight three-pointers.

La Conner resumes conference action tonight (Wednesday) with a 5:15 home tip-off opposite Coupeville. The Lady Braves entertain longtime rival Darrington Friday (6:45 p.m.) at Landy James Gym.

La Conner returns to the San Juans Tuesday (Jan. 24) at Orcas Island. Game time with the Lady Vikings, who fell 37-33 to Friday Harbor last month, is 5:30 p.m.