Tenino had a two-point lead entering the fourth quarter and victory in its reach. But a slew of miscues and a scoring drought was too much to overcome in a 51-43 loss to the Montesano on Friday.
The loss means the Beavers (14-5, 5-2 Evergreen) are the No. 2 seed in the 1A District 4 playoffs and will host the 1A Trico League’s No. 3 seed in the opening round on Feb. 11.
“This (loss) is gonna help us get to where we want to go,” Tenino coach Scott Ashmore said. “The girls played hard for four quarters.”
The Beavers trailed by two at the half (24-21), then took the lead in the third quarter by outscoring the Bulldogs 13-9. But Tenino senior Ashley Schow was the only Beaver to score in the fourth quarter as Monte reeled off an 18-9 run to end the game and hand Tenino the defeat.
“They extended their defense and put pressure on our guards at halfcourt,” Ashmore said. “We preached about not playing at their pace. They sped us up, got a couple buckets and the tide swung their way.”
Schow finished with 15 points and Alivia Hunter added 12.
Tenino has one more regular-season matchup, a makeup league game at Elma on Monday, before entering the district tournament.
