Bombers Stay Undefeated - By Josh Woodard

    Last night, the Richland Bomber girls took on the Hanford Falcons at Art Dawald Gymnasium. The Bombers come into this game 2-0 on the season and 1-0 in the conference, while the Falcons are 0-4 on the season and 0-2 in the conference. The atmosphere was amazing, with many Richland students dressed in camo gear and cheering on their Bombers.  Richland is looking to stay undefeated on the season, and that is what they did last night with a 56-41 win over the Falcons. 

Photo: Mason Metcalf (@metcalfmedia_)

    The game got underway with Hanford winning the tip and getting the ball to Lynnea Moran, who is already averaging 17 points on the season. Moran gets the ball and drives hard to the paint, but Mackenzie Schulz sends that shot right back to where it came from and then goes coast to coast to score the game's first points. Richland then got another defensive stop, followed by Kia Chang collecting the offensive board and connecting on a three of her own, making the score 5-0. The first quarter was a back-and-forth shootout for the most part that began with Hanford's Kendall Meyer connecting on two long-range threes, followed by Macie Milum answering with two threes of her own, tying up the game at 13 after the first quarter. Milum came out of the break with a steal and fast-break layup, which sparked a Bomber run. Maya Rowe finished a layup with Chang hitting another three, forcing a Hanford timeout. Hanford’s Payton Schmidt started things for the Falcons, scoring their first quarter points with an and-one layup. The Richland Bombers would head into the halftime breakup with eleven points after Schulz and Ryanne Stottlemyre buried two threes to end the quarter. The Hanford Falcons were 26.3 percent from the field and 2/6 from the three-point line, while Richland was 42.3 percent from the field and 5/8 from the three.

Photo: Mason Metcalf (@metcalfmedia_)

    The Bombers came out of the break slowly, while Hanford went on a 4-0 run to start the quarter. Richland didn’t score for the first two minutes of the quarter before Schulz drained a three to start the scoring for the Bombers. On the next possession, the bank was open as Schulz converted a three, increasing the Bomber lead to a score of 37-24. During the third quarter, Richland couldn't extend their lead, but they kept the eleven-point lead after the third, scoring 41-30. The fourth quarter was underway, and after a quick Hanford bucket, sophomore Kylee Kukes decided to do it herself, breaking the press and taking it all the way.  Chang repeated this by following in Kukes’s footsteps, doing the same as she went coast to coast, forcing Hanford Coach Nate Suggs into a timeout. After trading buckets, Shultz got the ball in the post and went to work drawing the foul and the bucket, giving Richland a 51-33 lead with 4:11 to play. Moran for Hanford drained a three and later found her way to the free throw line to cut into the Bomber lead. With 1:14 seconds left, Hanfords Payton Schmidt splashed a three, shortening the deficit to twelve points. However, it was Stottlemyre who hit the dagger, sending Hanford home. The Bomber's defense stood strong, and Richland would close out the game and outscore the Falcons 15-11 in the fourth quarter, extending their lead and winning the game 56-41.

    After the matchup, I got to catch up with senior Macie Milum and asked her how she felt about starting her senior season 3-0. She replied, “It feels pretty good to start with a couple of wins, and it gives us confidence as we head further into the season.” I also inquired about her goals for this season, and her response was, “My goal for the season is always to make it back to state.” She believes they can accomplish that goal by playing hard and working together. After last season, Richland had graduated many talented players, which led me to ask Macie how she has seen players step into bigger roles after losing key players. She says: “We have had a lot of girls step up, and we have more girls scoring in double digits, which is great after losing a lot of key scorers.” I also spoke with fan Colson Mackey and asked him what he thought of the game. He said: “ The girls battled really well in their game. I really enjoyed watching them play more physically than Hanford.” Richland takes on Hermiston tonight; on Tuesday, they host the Chiawana Riverhawks.

Photo: Mason Metcalf (@metcalfmedia_)