By Greg Farrar
Cherelle Demps, Liberty High School senior guard, is fouled by East Valley’s Hannah Burland (4) after stealing the ball from Elle Burland (12), as Jordan Phelan (5) follows the play, during the third quarter of their Feb. 28 Hardwood Classic 2A regional round basketball game.

Drive toward the basket, draw the foul and sink the free throws. She executed that sequence over and over, while opponent East Valley struggled to put a stop to it.

Demps, in what would be her final high-school basketball game, erupted for a game-high 26 points, 16 of which came at the free-throw line.

It wouldn’t be enough, however, as the Patriots fell to the team from Spokane, 71-50, in the loser-out playoff game at Renton High School. Liberty was just one win away from qualifying for the 2A state championship at the Yakima Valley SunDome.

“It wasn’t our best performance at the end of the day, and I think they all felt that,” Liberty coach Carly Fromdahl said. “We don’t have room for that in the lineup at this point in the season. Can’t have games where we drop the ball, or we aren’t on top of our Ps and Qs.”

Liberty trailed 16-10 after the first quarter, but crawled back in the second to actually go into halftime with a 29-28 lead.

It was an early third-quarter, 12-point unanswered East Valley run that eventually sunk the Patriots, though.

Demps was the Patriots’ clear star of the game, shooting 16-of-19 at the line, and grabbing six rebounds, two assists and three steals.

“She did exactly what we needed her to do,” Fromdahl said. “It’s tough when you don’t have the supporting cast there giving it what she’s giving it, but I mean what a great player, so athletic.”

East Valley had three double-digit scorers, while Demps was the only Patriot that found the net more than nine times.

Demps’ sister, Danielle, had the next-highest scoring total at seven, followed by sophomore Samantha Kelderman, who had six. Sarah Bliesner, Avery Granberg and Sydney Argosino each added three points. Devin Anderson rounded out the scoring with two points.

By Greg Farrar
Sitting sadly on the bench after the Demps sisters fouled out in the closing moments of Liberty’s 50-71 loss to East Valley are (from left) senior Cherelle Demps, junior Alissa Campbell, senior Danielle Demps, junior Savannah Metzger and sophomore Kylie Kirksey.

Liberty came into regionals as the District 2/3 No. 1 seed, after the Patriots won their district tournament.

“Things just started clicking,” Fromdahl said of the Liberty postseason. “Everything that we had been teaching them started molding together toward the end of the season.”

The Patriots opened eyes across the state with a 62-52 win over No. 3 ranked White River at districts. Cherelle Demps starred in that game, too, collecting 30 points.

“She’s really worked her tail off all season, watching film to get better,” Fromdahl said of Cherelle. “And I think the stats prove that she’s grown from the beginning of the season to now when we needed her the most.”

The team says goodbye to five seniors — Danielle and Cherelle Demps, Granberg, Bliesner and Devin Anderson — but first-year coach Fromdahl said the future is bright for Liberty basketball.

“We’re only going to get better from here,” she said. “We have a pretty deep bench, so letting them witness those five seniors and the impressions they’ve left on my underclassmen, I’m excited for the next season to see where they’ll grow from here.”

By Greg Farrar
Emily Skinner, Liberty High School junior forward, puts up two of her season-best eight points during the Patriots’ Jan. 23 basketball game against Interlake.

Minutes earlier, Demps had participated in the senior night ceremonies alongside her twin sister Danielle, and fellow teammates Sarah Bliesner, Avery Granberg and Devin Anderson.

The pomp and circumstance surrounded what would be one of the seniors’ final games in the Liberty gymnasium they’ve called home since they were freshmen.

“In the beginning of the game, it certainly did hit me,” Cherelle said.  “Looking around at these senior ladies really made me humble and grateful.”

It would end up being a career night for Cherelle, who had a season-high 20 points to go along with her six rebounds and two steals.

“During the Interlake game, I felt very confident in everything I wanted and was able to do,” Cherelle said.

The Patriots went on to beat the Saints, 63-46, that day, adding another W to the win column in what’s been an impressive season for the Liberty girls. As of press time, the Patriot season record was 13-6, with just one regular season game left to play.

Quickness, athleticism and a familiarity built through a core of players that have played together since fifth grade are among the 2015 Liberty squad’s strengths.

It’s why Cherelle said this team has a chance to do something special as the squad heads into the 2A postseason under first-year head coach Carly Fromdahl.

“We feel confident in each other and the real havoc we can put on teams when we want it bad enough,” Cherelle said. “We have a lot of things we need to improve upon, but we know if we work together as a unit we can do anything.”

The Patriots had one of their best starts in program history, but Fromdahl agreed that there’s still room to improve.

Fromdahl served as an assistant to Liberty coach Curtis Terry last year, so she’s not unfamiliar with the Patriots program. The first-year coach took over for Terry after he returned to his alma mater, the University of Nevada Las Vegas, to serve as an assistant.

She spent the season instilling toughness in the Patriots squad. Her team is built on a philosophy of hard-nosed defense, intensity and togetherness.

“Having a group of girls that are going to listen and buy into that philosophy, and have my back as much as I have their back, that’s been the key to our success so far,” she said.

It certainly helps that four of the Patriots’ starting five have played together since fifth grade. The Demps twins, Granberg and senior guard Anderson went undefeated together in both seventh and eighth grade on their Maywood Middle School team.

By Greg Farrar
Cherelle Demps (3), Liberty High School senior guard, draws a blocking foul from Interlake senior Adriana Cottle during the second quarter Jan. 23. Demps had a game- and season-high 20 points, six rebounds and two steals.

Even with the team’s 13-6 record, Fromdahl said her girls are better than they think, they just need to believe it.

Liberty has found itself ranked among the top 2A schools through much of the season. The Seattle Times currently has the Patriots ranked eighth.

“Even though we’re 2A, I still look at us as a 3A team,” Fromdahl said. “So, really, we kind of erase that 2A title and stay within a 3A mindset. We want to beat everyone.”

The Patriots finished the regular season Feb. 4 against No. 2 ranked Bellevue. Up next, Liberty will compete in the 2A District 2/3 Tournament.

Last year, Liberty just missed advancing to the 3A state tournament at the Tacoma Dome. Now at 2A, the goal is to reach the state playoffs held at the Yakima Valley SunDome.

There’s a new name atop the Hazen High School boys basketball career scoring list.

Senior Dominic Green took over the top spot after a Wednesday night victory over Tyee. Green now has 1,137 career points, edging out 1992 Hazen graduate Jason Hamilton’s 1,109.

Green, a small forward, will continue his career at Arizona State University next year. He signed his national letter of intent in front of family, friends and teammates Nov. 12.

At the time, Green told the Newcastle News that he chose the Sun Devils because of their great coaching staff and the school’s ideal location.

Herb Sendek’s program is adding an athlete that loves to score, has a strong competitive fire and doesn’t like losing, Green said.

“They’re getting a player who’s a great shooter, very long and lanky, and is just willing to play,” he said.

Green is the first Hazen boys basketball player to sign with a Division I school since 1992, when Hamilton began his career at San Diego State before transferring to the University of Washington. Hamilton, whose record stood for more than two decades, now serves as a radio analyst for the Huskies’ basketball team.

Green will continue to add to his new career mark when the West Central District Tournament begins Feb. 12.

By Greg Farrar
Ashlan Applegate, Liberty High School senior forward, throws up three of her 10 points to open the second quarter against Cleveland in their 3A state regional loser-out game March 1.

If anyone had any questions about the Liberty High School girls basketball team’s season goal, they need only to look at the players’ forearms as they stepped on the Bellevue College court for a March 1 loser-out, winner-to-state game.

Scrawled in black, capital letters was the acronym DIFD — Do it for the Dome, the Tacoma Dome, that is.

The Patriots’ road to the state tournament, held at the Tacoma Dome, came to an end March 1, after a 48-35 loss to top-ranked Cleveland.

“We didn’t quite get to the Tacoma Dome and that final eight, but we’re all so proud of what they’ve done, what they’ve accomplished,” first-year coach Curtis Terry said of his team.

Liberty had the unfortunate task of facing Cleveland in the state’s regional round, just 11 days after the Eagles beat them, 70-28, in the district tournament.

The Patriots used that experience, and the extra time to prepare for Cleveland, to craft a game plan that ensured the more than 40-point deficit wouldn’t happen again, Terry said.

“We felt for us to have the best chance of succeeding against them was to slow the game down,” he said. “We tried to make them score from the outside, as opposed to getting to the basket and scoring in transition and for the most part, we were able to do that throughout the game.”

Liberty was down just 7-5 after the first quarter, despite Cleveland’s suffocating defense, which made it difficult for the Patriots to just move the ball down court.

Throughout the first half, Liberty displayed the toughness required to go up against the Eagles, ranked the No. 1 3A girls team in the state. Just when Cleveland appeared to be running away with the game, the Patriots would respond with a run of their own.

Liberty went into halftime down just five points, a far cry from the Patriots’ Feb. 18 matchup with Cleveland, when they were losing 34-15 as they headed to the locker room.

Cleveland’s lead grew to nine points, after the third quarter, and the Eagles eventually sealed the deal with their 16-point fourth quarter.

Despite the loss, Liberty was still among the state’s top 16 teams, evidenced by its spot in the regional round, in a year when no one really gave them a chance, Terry said.

“We exceeded everybody’s goal except for our own,” he said. “Everybody expected us to have an average season, but from the onset, the girls wanted to make a run at the league championship, and ultimately, to make it to the Tacoma Dome. We really proved a lot of people wrong.”

Senior Ashlan Applegate and junior Cherelle Demps led the Patriots with 10 points each for the Cleveland game. Applegate, who earned second-team All-KingCo honors, also added 10 rebounds.

“Ashlan did a little bit of everything for us this year,” Terry said. “She’s not a player that has to get shots to be effective.”

Captain Sierra Carlson, also a senior, didn’t have her best game against Cleveland, but she joined Applegate as a second-team All-KingCo performer.

“She was a great extension of myself on the court,” Terry said. “She would be on the court, echoing what I had to say, making sure everyone was in the right spots.”

In his first year leading the Patriots, Terry was named KingCo 3A/2A Coach of the Year. Players often pointed to him as the reason for Liberty’s quick turnaround this year, but he was quick to give all the credit to his girls.

“That honor is just a reflection of the girls and the work that they put in,” he said. “They worked so hard, made sacrifices and they made a commitment not only to me but to each other.”

Liberty finished the season with a 19-8 record.

By Greg Farrar
Isaiah Davis (right), Hazen High School senior guard, drives around Lindbergh senior forward Michael Smith on Jan. 29 to put up the last two points of the game in the Highlanders’ double-overtime, 71-64 victory.

The 2013-2014 Hazen High School Highlanders boys basketball team isn’t used to losing, so when it suffered its second loss of the season against Renton Jan. 24, the boys couldn’t wait to get back on the court.

“We took two days off and I think they were just excited to get back competing on the court again, which was encouraging to see,” coach Ryan Thompson said.

The loss to the Indians showed Hazen that the team couldn’t take anyone lightly, as it sat atop the Seamount League standings, senior guard Isaiah Davis said.

It’s a mistake they won’t make again, he added, as the Highlanders wrap up what’s been an impressive regular season.

Just three seniors graduated from last year’s Hazen squad, a team that went 7-14. So, this year’s near perfect record, in which they already have more wins than they had losses all of last year, is even more surprising given it was done with almost the same roster.

His team’s quick turnaround is due, in part, to a tireless offseason, Thompson said, in which the guys put in significant work in the weight room and on the court.

“We have a lot of experience that we haven’t had the last two years, but these guys put in the work out of season to put themselves in this situation,” he said.

Summer workouts were well-attended, allowing the guys to grow closer as a team, senior Adonis Shareef said. The Highlanders also benefitted from a key transfer in sophomore guard Connor O’Hearn.

“Everybody had the mindset where we had goals to be Seamount champs and go to state and make the seniors’ last year count,” Davis said of the offseason motivation.

The Highlanders are poised to meet those goals, with a chance to win the league title outright.

In a season filled with highlights, the one victory that stands out among the rest for the Highlanders is the team’s 84-52 win against rival Kennedy on Jan. 10.

“Kennedy was a big one,” Shareef said. “These guys beat us every year and we couldn’t let that happen again this year.”

Dominic Green had a career-high 31 points, while Anthony Phillips had 18 points and 16 rebounds, in a game that Thompson called the team’s “most complete effort to date.”

“Dominic has had a really good year,” Thompson said. “He’s stepped up a lot from where he was last year. He had a monster summer and really came back a different kid.”

Hazen will wrap up its regular season Feb. 7, when it hosts Tyee at home. From there, the team will compete at districts with the hopes of eventually making it to state, but the players admitted they aren’t looking that far ahead just yet.

“We’ve got a 1-0 mentality for every game we play, so every time we come out, we’re not worried about the next game or the game after that, we’re worried about what we’ve got to do that night,” Shareef said.

The Patriots weren’t even considered in the same class as KingCo 3A/2A giants Juanita and Bellevue. It’s understandable — this group, with virtually the same roster, went 13-11 last year, good for fourth in the conference.

By Greg Farrar
Ashlan Applegate (44), Liberty High School senior forward, puts up a shot as Marissa Therriault, of Sammamish, defends during the first quarter of their Jan. 17 basketball game. The Patriots won against the Totems, 54-28.

The Patriots girls basketball team is quickly turning heads across the state, though, with big wins against ranked opponents Everett, Bellevue and previously unbeaten Juanita.

“We’re the underdogs, so when we do beat those teams, it’s pretty awesome,” Liberty senior forward Ashlan Applegate said.

Applegate led Liberty scorers with 16 points in the Patriots’ Jan. 15 upset of Juanita, 61-54. She also collected 10 rebounds and recorded three steals and three assists. The Rebels were without freshman star Tea Adams in that contest.

“Every year, they are big competition and this year, they were first in the league, so it was a big deal to get that win,” Applegate said of Juanita.

It was an important win for Liberty, under first-year coach Curtis Terry. Juanita was unbeaten and ranked second in the state at the time, according to The Seattle Times. As of press time, the Patriots were still the only team in the state to beat the Rebels this year.

Liberty is an experienced team, with a roster that is largely the same as last year. There is one significant change, though, and it factors considerably in the Patriots’ quick turnaround this season, senior captain Sierra Carlson said.

“The new coach, he just totally turned our program around, and I think we just come to games with a new fire in our eyes,” she said.

Terry came to Liberty after working as an assistant at Auburn Riverside; before that, he starred on the court, playing at the University of Nevada Las Vegas. He graduated from University Place’s Curtis High School in 2004.

“Last year was kind of rough, and I think with a new coach we just needed something new,” Applegate said. “I think he’s the perfect coach for our team.”

The regular season came to a close Feb. 5, and now the Patriots are looking forward to a bevy of postseason hurdles, which they hope culminates with a trip to the Tacoma Dome for the state tournament.

“I think we have a very, very good chance of doing well this year and actually showing what Liberty can do,” Carlson said.

By Christina Corrales-Toy
Anthony Phillips, Hazen High School junior center, goes to the basket as Liberty defends during their Dec. 1 basketball game. Hazen defeated Liberty, 50-44.

After the final buzzer rang in the boys basketball matchup pitting Renton rivals Hazen and Liberty high schools against each other, the court was filled with a sea of celebrating students — Hazen students, that is.

Hazen’s sizable student section, all clad in white, stormed the court at Hazen High School after the Highlanders knocked off Liberty, 50-44, Dec. 1.

“I know there’s a certain rivalry with Liberty and Hazen,” Hazen coach Ryan Thompson said. “I don’t think the two schools are too fond of each other, so it’s a big win for us. They got us last year and we certainly wanted to get some revenge this year.”

Hazen got off to a quick start, outscoring the Patriots, 14-8, after the first quarter. The deficit widened before halftime, with the Highlanders leading Liberty, 28-20.

But the Patriots, following the guidance of new coach Omar Parker, refused to go down easily, putting together an inspired second half in which Liberty actually outscored Hazen 24-22.

With just less than two minutes to go in the fourth quarter, Liberty tied the game at 44. But the Patriots were never quite able to capture the lead and in the waning seconds of the game, the Highlanders pulled away.

“It was really a sign of toughness for us to come out and see how hard we would play tonight,” Thompson said of Hazen’s performance. “We didn’t drop our intensity at all, so that was the biggest thing that I was proud of our guys for.”

Senior captain Brody Graybeal led the Highlanders in scoring with 15 points. Matthew Campbell led the Patriots with 15 points as well.

Thompson called the win a complete team effort, but did single out the play of junior center Anthony Phillips.

“I thought Anthony Phillips, who is battling an ankle injury and just played through it, was really big for us inside,” he said. “I think he had nine rebounds and really was big inside and had some big baskets late.”

Parker said he was pleased with his team’s determination, especially in the second half, despite the loss.

“I thought our guys just played super hard,” he said. “I loved how connected we were emotionally. We really seemed to be playing for each other.”

Parker has a very experienced team to work with this year, with nine of his team’s 14 players being seniors.

“The difference between a sophomore and junior in high school and a senior is a pretty big leap and this group of seniors has shown great leadership,” he said.

Look for seniors Robbie Thomas, Timothy Phan, Tynan Gilmore, Dalton O’Brien and Matthew Campbell to play key leadership roles for this year’s team, Parker said.

While Liberty has experience, Hazen is just the opposite, with only three seniors on its varsity squad.

“We’re very young and a little green, but the good thing about that is we’ve got a long ways to go,” Thompson said. “I think we can really get to somewhere special by the end of the year if we keep working and stay together.”

Hoopfest was June 30 and July 1 in downtown Spokane. It spanned 42 city blocks with 458 courts, 7,000 teams and 27,000 players.

Contributed
Some of the more than 70 Newcastle boys and girls celebrate with a group photo after finishing their basketball tournament play at the 2012 Spokane Hoopfest.

David Cour said many kids are part of the Liberty Select Basketball program, which is a select feeder program for the high school.

Cour traveled with his wife and three sons to the event, their fourth time participating. Their sons Chase, 12, and Griffin, 9, both played in the tournament. (Their third son, Kellan, 6, is too young to play.) Chase won his bracket and Griffin came in second place. Cour said the trip is very enjoyable, especially if families are into basketball.

More than 1,000 volunteers help run Hoopfest, including a monitor for each court. Games are 25 minutes or end when the first team gets to 20 points. There were also a lot of sponsor booths and other activities for kids.

Every year, the presence of Newcastle has grown in the event because of word-of-mouth. Dennis Rattie heard so many good things about it from others that he decided to take his 8-year-old, Ethan, to play.

“It was nice to have a lot of friendly faces around there,” Rattie said. “I think the favorite part for me was how big it is.”

Rattie said a packet of information from other Newcastle families was provided for him, including a map showing where all the players from Newcastle would be playing, and their contact information.

“The coolest thing for me was seeing Ethan playing and all the support from others,” he said.

Since the event brings so many people to Spokane, it is difficult to book a hotel room. Upon checkout this year, Rattie said hotels offered registration for next year’s room, which he has already booked.

Lynn Bisset also took her son to play. Jack, 13, played in the tournament with his cousin for the fifth year in a row. The boys have been on the same team since the beginning and took third in their bracket this year.

“If you are a basketball family like we are, it’s just a lot of fun,” Bisset said. “There is basketball everywhere. It’s an upbeat environment and music is blasting.”

To kick-off the weekend, the Newcastle families have a picnic Friday night at Spokane’s Riverfront Park by a big red barn. Bisset said it felt like Lake Boren Park had been picked up and placed in Spokane.

“We kind of overtake this area for a Newcastle picnic, at least 70 to 80 people there,” she said.

While at the park, the kids like to watch the hoops being put up in the street, Debbie McAllister said. Her sons Blake, 13, and Chase, 10, both played at Hoopfest.

“It was really fun,” Chase said.

The boys play with friends from school and said they enjoy that the most. In the past, their dad, Duncan, has played. His bracket won last year and he thought it would be a good time to retire from Hoopfest.

Age brackets separate the games and each court is sponsored. Entry fees vary depending on the type of team. Hoopfest began 22 years ago and since has donated more than $1 million to charitable organizations with an emphasis on Special Olympics.

Katie Larsen: 392-6434, ext. 236, or isspress@isspress.com. Comment at www.issaquahpress.com.

Winegar earned four varsity letters in basketball and was named a captain as well as the most valuable player at Liberty. She rose through the rankings of the all-league teams in her time at Liberty, making honorable mention in 2010, second-team all-league in 2011 and first-team all-conference and all-state in 2012.

“Aspen Winegar was a positive force on the Liberty girls basketball team for four years,” Liberty coach Randy Leifer said in a press release. “She is an outstanding player that can play with her back to the basket in the post or move outside, where she led the league in 3-point shooting percentage. Aspen is not only an excellent player, she is also a great teammate who set a good example for others, worked hard, was very coachable and kept teammates smiling.”

The University of Montana Western competes in the Frontier Conference of the National Intercollegiate Athletics Association.

As the Patriots took on conference opponent Mercer Island the evening of Jan. 25, all but two players on the roster scored for the team.

“I think we really have a lot of depth on our team, and we shot the ball well tonight,” Leifer said after the 59-50 victory over the Islanders. “We didn’t rebound as well as we should have been, though, and we’ll work on that.”

Starting junior forward Delane Agnew had a team-high 14 points for Liberty — eight of those dropped the first quarter to give Liberty a big push up front — in the contest.

By Greg Farrar Delane Agnew, Liberty High School junior forward, lofts two of her 14 points against Mercer Island over sophomore guard Ari Moscatel during the third quarter.

Starting sophomore guard Sierra Carlson contributed 12 points and four rebounds, while senior guard Stephanie Yea knocked down two three-point shots in the first half and ended the game with eight total points.

The score was 29-14 at the half.

While Liberty senior center Aspen Winegar, who is averaging 13.9 points per game, only came up with four points against the Islanders, she contributed eight rebounds, three assists and two blocks on the night.

“Having that depth makes for a nice dynamic on the team because people can play all game and get some time in,” he said. “If someone isn’t doing that well that night, then there’s someone else already ready to come in.”

Leifer said as the team looks to wrapping up the regular season and begins to prepare for playoffs, the team must shore up its rebounding skills to deny other teams at second — and third — chance shots.

Turnovers remain a stumbling block for the team as well, he said.

“After taking that break because of the weather, I think we need to just need to get everybody back in shape,” Leifer said. “We need to cut those turnovers down and get more aggressive with our rebounding. Those are the two big things we’ll need to focus on.”

Mercer Island’s Julia Blumenstein and Ari Moscatel led the Islanders with 16 and 10 points, respectively.

Christina Lords: 392-6434, ext. 239, or newcastle@isspress.com.