By Tyler Hergert
On Tuesday night, the Kelso Hilanders (3-3) were looking to bounce back from a tough road loss last Thursday against Mountain View. The Capital Cougars (3-3) were looking to keep up their stellar play after an impressive 76-34 win over Shelton on Saturday.
Capital was able to jump out to an early 4-3 lead with some great defense to start the game but it would be all Hilanders after that. The Cougars would only score one point after that as Kelso’s tenacious defense thwarted Capital’s offense for the rest of the first quarter. Sharpshooters Hayden Yore and Michael Henderson each had a three in the opening quarter and Ethan Mitchell had a few great drives to the basket to lead the Hilanders to a 19-5 lead.
Kelso’s unabating defense started the second quarter forcing two quick turnovers that turned into baskets at the other end which forced Capital to burn their first timeout. Yore poured in two more three-balls, and Gunnar Burt and Zeke Smith were able to connect from behind the three-point stripe to help Kelso build a 42-20 halftime lead.
In the second half, Kelso would continue to force Capital to turn the ball over, and Naiser Lukas would have multiple steals throughout the game which helped Kelso add to their lead. Cooper Carlson for the Cougars had a good second half as his jumper started to heat up. Kelso was getting contributions all over the floor as Blake Eastham had a nice dunk in transition and Zeke Smith was able to hit from beyond the arc in the third quarter and had a nice play in the lane where he missed a layup, got the rebound, had his shot blocked, ripped the ball away from a Cougars defender and laid the ball in. It was one of those nights for Kelso as shots fell from everywhere, the Hilanders had another quarter scoring over 20 points to give them a 65-29 lead heading into the fourth.
The Cougars found some rhythm offensively as Wesley Bjornsgard and Carlson helped lead Capital but Kelso was too much for them. It felt like every Kelso three they would attempt would fall but Capital was able to put together their best offensive quarter in the fourth. The Hilanders hot shooting would help lead them to an 85-47 victory. 85 points are the most points Kelso has scored in a game this season as the previous high for them was 65 which came in their first game against Prairie.
Kelso (4-3) has alternated between wins and losses but they will be back in action next Thursday when they play Ellensburg and West Valley on Friday at the SunDome Shootout.
Capital (3-4) will try and bounce back next Thursday as well for a road test against Tumwater before closing out 2022 with a home game against Mount Tahoma.
You can watch the entire game on the NFHS Network on-demand. Subscriptions are $11.99 per month and gives you access to the entire NFHS Network all across the country to watch the live broadcasts or any on-demand games. Go to https://www.nfhsnetwork.
