The Vashon girls basketball team returned to the win column on Tuesday, Jan. 31, when the Pirates defeated the Orting Cardinals.

The contest may have been the last meeting for a long time between the two schools, as Orting is slated move to class 2A next year.

The Pirates opened the game with a scoring barrage behind an effective press and transition scoring. The opportunities resulted in a 19-5 first-quarter advantage.

Leading 30-13 at the break, Vashon cruised to a 31-point advantage in the third quarter on the way to a 52-28 win.

Charlotte Kehoe had an outstanding game, scoring 24 points with double digit rebounds. Anya Quig scored 14 points, while Rachel Hoffman (5) and Jasmine Acosta (3) added to the totals.

Molly Johnson, Anna Osborne and Shannon Slater each added 2 points to complete the Pirate scoring.

On Friday the team played the Charles Wright Tarriers. With a playoff spot on the line, and needing wins in all three of their final games, the Tarriers played inspired basketball, jumping out to a 10-point advantage, and the first quarter ended with the Pirates trailing, 17-7.

Matters became more dire when Kehoe picked up a third foul early in the second quarter.

While the Pirates hung in gamely, they were unable to close the gap, still trailing by 10 at halftime, 26-16.

The third quarter belonged to the Pirates as they closed the gap to just two points, ending the third quarter at 26-28.

But in the final quarter, Vashon lost both starting post players to fouls (first Kehoe and then Tagen Lynch) and needing to stop the clock to get possession, had to put the Tarriers on the free-throw line.

In the end the Pirates came out on the short end of this game, with a final score of 38-28.

Vashon scoring was again led by Kehoe (12) and Quig (9). Acosta hit an early 3-pointer, while Kelsey Abella and Lynch added two points each.

Coach Henry Porter was optimistic after the game.

“We did not rebound very well, and this is something we normally do much better than we did this evening,” he said. “We’ll get this corrected and be ready for Chimacum and Senior Night,” he added.

A home win over the visiting Chimacum Cowboys on Tuesday prior to press deadline would assure the Pirates a playoff game. Check the Vashon High School website for place and time information.

— Gary Means is the assistant coach of the Vashon girls basketball team.