MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Christian Academy/Covenant Christian School Lions came back to win 48-30 over the Soap Lake Eagles on Tuesday evening to move on to the third-place round in the District 5 1B tournament. Both teams came into this game knowing it was win-to-stay-in. 

“We wanted to come out with intensity,” said Lions senior SanTahna Ferguson. "Although we did start slow in the first half, we had a little pep talk from our coach with a lot of encouragement, ways to fix what we were doing wrong. Then we came out in the second half even stronger and that’s when we pulled away.” 

The Eagles came out to take an early lead over the Lions in the first quarter as Tanya Zubritskiy sank two three-pointers. The Lions fell behind, scoring only four points off two shots from Shay Kast. 

The Lions gained more momentum in the second quarter to match the Eagles at seven points scored. By the end of the half, Soap Lake remained on top with the score at 13-11. 

Lions Head Coach Josh Kast said he talked with his team at halftime about using the last two quarters of the game to keep their playoff run alive. 

“If you want to stay alive in the tournament, you’ve got to execute,” he said. “We’ve got to take better shots, play better defense, rebound better.” 

During the third quarter, the Lions caused a major shift in momentum, scoring 25 points. At the same time, they held the Eagles to their lowest-scoring quarter of the night with just five points. MLCA/CCS held a 36-18 lead at the end of the quarter.  

“We picked it up on our defense and on our offense – we switched up a few things,” said SanTahna.  

The Eagles scored 12 in the fourth quarter, but the Lions had too much momentum to overcome. By the final buzzer, the Lions had an 18-point lead to secure their victory and move on to the final round of districts. 

The top scorer of the night for the Lions was Shay Kast, who earned 26 points during the game. The Eagles’ top scorer was Tanya Zubritskiy with 11 points, followed closely by Brooke Dana with 10. 

Coach Kast said the Lions knew it was going to be a tough battle coming into their matchup against Soap Lake, and he had expected a back-and-forth game. Despite their struggles in the first half, he was pleased with how well they came back and rallied to take the victory. 

The defensive efforts of Lions players Amelia Shopbell, Clarrissa Shopbell and Taylor Starnes and the offensive performance of Shay were key in the team’s success for the second half of the game, said the Lions coach.   

Coming out of this matchup was a good lesson for the Lions as they learned how important it is to come into every game with full intensity, he said. 

“You’ve got to play four quarters of basketball,” Coach Kast said. “One quarter can sink you, and it has, multiple times this year, as far as coming out and having a bad third quarter or coming out and having a bad first quarter to start the game. It can really bury you in a hole.” 

Eagles Head Coach Leonard Lundgren said Soap Lake had a great first half as they played some of the best defense they had this season. However, he said, the turnovers on their side of the ball and the offensive push from the Lions in the third quarter were where things fell apart. 

“At the fourth quarter, we fought back, but by then we were down by 20, so it was kind of hard to climb back,” said Lundgren. 

With the Eagles’ season coming to a close, the Soap Lake coach said there was a lot of great improvement and heart seen in the younger girls that has him confident in the future of the team. This determination is something that started with the five seniors for the Eagles: Mylee Dana, Tanya Zubritskiy, Liana Sushik, Brooke Dana and Sage Hart. 

Lundgren said each of the seniors played an important role that balanced out wherever they were needed on the court.  

“I really hope that the young girls see the spots they fill in for; that’s the kind of role they play coming into next year,” he said. 

Mylee said her favorite part of playing in her senior season was working with the younger girls on the Eagles. As much as the seniors helped build up the underclassmen, she said, the young players helped uplift the seniors. 

“The young girls are the most uplifting set of girls we’ve had,” said Mylee. “We’ve never had a really big team these past few years, so coming in and having the younger ones come in was a great experience.” 

She said one legacy that the senior class wants to leave behind for future Eagles is to keep a strong fighting spirit and have the girls strive to play their best on both sides of the ball. 

The final game before state is just a few days away for the Lions. SanTahna said the team is going to work on keeping high intensity and celebrating the little things. She is excited about what is coming up ahead as she continues through her final postseason as a Lion. 

“It’s crazy to think that it’s my last postseason, so we’ve got to fight hard and make it far,” she said. 

The Lions will play the Wilson Creek Devils at Wenatchee High School at 11 a.m. Saturday for third place in District 5 1B. 

BOX SCORE 

SPLK: 6-7-5-12: 30
MLCA: 4-7-25-12: 48 

    MLCA/CCS senior SanTahna Ferguson runs in to make a layup during the district semifinals against Soap Lake.
  

    Mylee Dana, a senior from Soap Lake, makes her way from the edge of the court toward the basket looking for an opportunity to score.
  

    Eagles senior Tanya Zubritskiy prepares to toss the ball over toward an open teammate after gaining possession. Zubritskiy led the Eagles offensively with 11 points.
  

    Brooke Dana, a senior from the Eagles, raises her arm to block a shot from Clarissa Shopbell, an eighth-grader from the MLCA.
  

    Lions junior Amelia Shopbell rushes toward the hoop after taking possession of the ball against Soap Lake Tuesday evening.