Even with all the success in the four-year tenure of Bothell High girls basketball coach Kent Shaefer, the Cougars hadn’t ever hit 80 points — but that changed on Wednesday evening.
Led by 27 points from senior post Taya Corosdale, Bothell ran away from Issaquah for a dominant conference victory, 83-51, on Jan. 4 at Bothell High School.
Bothell (5-0, 9-1) won for the second game in a row, and is now two games removed from what Corosdale said was a wake-up call loss to White River on Dec. 22.
“All of us really took that one to heart,” Corosdale said. “We came in a little uneasy. We weren’t really sure. We had film, but I just don’t think we were really sure about [White River] as a whole. Then we came out with a slow start. That game it took us longer to get our spark, and it showed. It really showed.”
The week leading into the White River loss was a tough one with several sick players held up in practice, Shaefer said. The team was also out of school for the winter break.
“I think they understand that they have to prepare to play well, and the White River game kind of drove that in a little bit,” Shaefer said. “I would say, traditionally, we aren’t the best team at preparing as well as we can. I feel like the last two weeks have been as good as we’ve been, in terms of practice.”
While Issaquah (0-5 KingCo, 5-6) sits at the bottom of the conference standings, the Eagles came in on a four-game winning streak. Issaquah kept pace with Bothell for the first few minutes, but the Cougars ended the first quarter on a 16-3 run. The Cougars led by 19 at halftime, and outscored Issaquah 30-17 in the third quarter.
Corosdale was one-shy of her season high after putting up 28 in a nonconference win over Juanita on Dec. 30. Corosdale also added 12 rebounds, four assists and three steals.
The win over the Eagles sets up a big conference showdown with Woodinville. The Falcons (5-0, 10-1) are the only other team with an undefeated conference record. Bothell swept both games from Woodinville last season, but both games were close.
“Playing a rivalry game like that against a good team, that’s what you play for, you know?” Shaefer said. “The gym will be exciting and everybody will be fired up to be there. It’s good that we’ve played some tough teams leading up to that.”
Against Issaquah, senior guard Keyonna Jones dominated in the first half, scoring 12 in the first quarter and finishing the half with 18 points. Jones had a quiet second half, finishing the game with 23 points and 10 rebounds.
Emily Gibson, after a quiet first half, scored eight points in the second half and finished with 10. Jada Romulus had a big second half as well, and finished with 12 points.
Sydney Cowan scored only two points, but finished with a team-high eight assists and added six boards and four steals.
Paige Wilson led Issaquah with 12 points. Lucy Stewart and Mariah VanHalm both scored 11 points.
Bothell is scheduled to play at 6 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 6, at Woodinville High School. The Bothell boys will also be in action in Woodinville, scheduled to play the Falcons at 8 p.m.
