MATTAWA — The Wahluke Warriors girls basketball team earned its first victory of the season following a close matchup against River View on Monday evening. Warriors head coach Mikai Hirai said this was a very exciting victory for the team as they gained energy for the second half of the season. 

“I’m pretty happy, but I think I’m more excited for the girls because the thing that everybody wants to see is when they work hard that they get to see some type of product or result of it. Not just in sports but in anything really,” said Hirai. “I’m pumped for them because I can see the improvement.” 

River View pulled ahead of the Warriors in the first quarter, but Wahluke managed to keep the score close, only being down by three. Things remained close in the second quarter as Wahluke kept up with their opponent, outscoring their opponent to go into the half down only 18-20. 

The Warriors outscored River View once again in the third quarter to pull ahead for the first time in the game 29-28. Wahluke and River View stayed close throughout the fourth quarter, but the Warriors remained ahead as they earned their first victory of the season 37-35. 

This win not only marked the first win for the Warriors this season, but also the team’s first win in two seasons. Their last victory took place Dec. 28, 2023, in a 45-23 victory over Granger. 

“Some of these girls were freshmen the last time they experienced a win and one of the girls who’s a senior on our team was a sophomore,” said Hirai. “It’s been a while for them and I’d say the energy is good.” 

Hirai said the thing that stuck out the most to him in the Warriors’ victory was the players were all clicking well together and responding to in-game coaching. 

“We kept asking them to do different things throughout the game and basically every time they responded and started doing the thing that we had asked them to do,” said the coach. “When you’re right there neck and neck, I think the pressure was on to meet the challenge and I really think they responded well.” 

Following this victory and as they head into the second half of the season, Hirai said the focus for Wahluke will be to get more into the more complex aspects of the game.  

The excitement of the victory and how close it was has awakened a new level of determination in many of the players, the coach said. During the game and even in the following practice, there were many players who became animated in pushing both themselves and their teammates to want to improve.  

One aspect of the game he would like to improve on is getting the Warriors ready to make plays to kill possessions defensively. He said this season, Wahluke has struggled with defensive rebounding, where the opposition would be held for 30 seconds and forced to shoot, but would still make the points through a rebound. 

“It’s as important to get a defensive rebound as it is to get a steal or to stop a team for 30 seconds defensively because it’s a wasted possession if you can’t stop a team in the 30 seconds if they just get the ball back,” said Hirai. 

As the Warriors celebrate their victory, they will take what they learned from this game and carry the energy forward through the rest of the season. Their next game will be on the road Saturday against Cashmere at 3:45 p.m. 

BOX SCORE:  

WHLK: 7-11-11-8: 37 

RVVW: 10-10-8-7: 35

    Yohary Magana from the Warriors takes the ball down the court after gaining possession in a previous away game this season. Head Coach Mikai Hirai said this victory seems to have gotten multiple players more animated about improving this season.
  

    Wahluke senior Valerie Segura Espindola prepares to maneuver around a defender during a previous away game this season. This victory was the first win for the team since Segura Espindola was in her sophomore year.