The Ferris girls basketball team is off to a 3-0 start but lost sophomore point guard Juju Lewis to an injury in a loss to Central Valley and has lost four straight.
But Lewis bounced back Thursday at Numerica Veterans Arena, helping lead to a 66-64 win over Lewis and Clark in the opening game of the nonleague “Rubber Chicken” week between the Greater Spokane League foes.
The boy’s game and annual ghost contest ended after publication.
Senior Brooke Chisholm scored 19 points, Lewis and senior Mateia Eschenbacher each had 17 points, and the Saxons withstood LC’s 26-point fourth quarter to pull out the victory.
Senior Olivia Baird led LC with 21 points — including three 3-pointers in the fourth quarter. Senior Ruby Shaw had 16 and junior Rhiannon Kilgore added 10.
“We have a young group, but we have some seniors who really stepped it up and took that leadership role for us tonight,” Ferris coach Courtney Gray said. “That helped us get the young guys into it and get them going as well.
“Chicken is always really exciting,” Eschenbacher said. “But when we come out and have all that energy and the crowd is roaring and the lights are blinding, it’s just 10 times more exciting. And then, especially when we win, everything is so amazing.”
“It was really a team effort,” Chisholm said. “I feel like we played really well together. We moved the ball. And we fed off each other’s energy really well. I think that played a big part.”
Lewis did not start in his first game back from injury, but was the first substitute off the bench and provided an immediate stabilizing force at the point. Sophomore Ellie Robinson, a key contributor off the bench, also suffered a CV injury and returned Thursday.
“Having multiple guards and having to move a few people around made it a little difficult the last few games,” Gray said. “But having them back and coming out with that energy and helping make crucial plays at crucial times made a huge difference.
“(Lewis) just came in and was ready to go with some amazing passes and fired up our team even more,” Eschenbacher said.
Chisholm’s 3 early in the fourth quarter gave Ferris (4-4) a double-digit lead, but Baird hit a pair of 3s to make it a five-point game with four minutes left.
“I’m trying to be very versatile at every position so I can attack our team in those moments,” Chisholm said.
“She’s one of our senior leaders,” Gray said of Chisholm, “and I know I can always count on her to shoot well and hit those great shots when we need them.”
LC made it three points with Eschenbacher on the bench after his fourth foul. But Scarlett Stevens scored on a fast break, then Eschenbacher scored in the paint with 1:44 left to make it 58-51.
Kilgore hit a corner 3 with 26.8 seconds left to get LC (3-4) within four, then Baird hit a quick 3 with six seconds left to get LC within three at 64-61.
But Chisholm made a couple of free throws down the ice.
“They were just coming back,” Eschenbacher said. “And there were waves when we competed against each other.
The two teams play in league play on Feb. 3 at LC, and it could decide which 4A team gets a shot at district play.
“Playing these rivalry games, it’s going to be a battle no matter what game it is, whether it’s non-league or league, it still matters to us,” Gray said. “And I mean, it’s just getting us ready for the league and getting ready to go out there and face them again and beat them again.
Eschenbacher drilled a 3-pointer, Lewis hit 4 of 6 from the line and Ferris led 14-10 after one.
Shaw drained a 3 early in the second to complete a 9-5 run to tie the game at 19-19. Lewis answered with a couple of left-handed runners in the lane, but Shaw struck out another 3 to tie it again. Robinson came off the bench for a late 3 and Ferris led 31-29 at the half.
Lewis scored on a fast break, then Chisholm drained a 3 and Ferris opened up a seven-point lead early in the third. Eschenbacher had seven points in the period and the Saxons led 45-38 in the fourth.
“I always look forward to Rubber Chicken. It’s like an early Christmas,” Chisholm said. “It’s so much fun. And the energy is so great to play with.”
Boys
Ferris 50, Lewis and Clark 45: Sophomore Cole Floyd scored 21 points with 10 rebounds and the Saxons (3-4) outscored the Tigers (4-4) late in the game.
“It’s never pretty,” Ferris coach Sean Mallon said. “I mean, we told our guys beforehand, ‘It’s always physical, it’s low-scoring. We’re going to have to play as hard or harder than them,’ and that’s just the way it has to be.”
“Our goal is to get one game at a time with hard work, basically make it a scrum,” Ferris senior Balien Robinson said. “We showed all four quarters, we gave it our all.
Ferris was held to four to six points for most of the game, but Brady Dowling’s runner with 2:40 to go pulled LC within two points at 47-45. Russian guard Boston Hess went 1-of-2 at the line with 46.6 seconds left to make it a three-point game.
LC missed a long 3-pointer and Floyd made 1 of 2 at the other end for a two-possession game. Ferris got a layup and junior Bijon Edwards-Kays added a free throw to provide the final score.
Ferris won the ghost competition; LC has won four of its last five. Ferris leads the series 22-20.
“LC has had ‘Chuck’ for about three years,” Robinson said. “It feels good to find a break in the cycle and bring Chuck back home for his senior year.
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