Sea-King 3A Girls | Inspired Issaquah beats Hale, 54-40

BELLEVUE — "Let's do this for Erin."

After Issaquah's Erin Nicol had been carried off the court by paramedics, the rallying cry went up in the Eagles' huddle. With just over five minutes left, fourth-ranked Issaquah led Nathan Hale only 40-38.

Nicol's teammates responded with a 14-2 finishing run, resulting in a 54-40 victory in a Sea-King 3A District girls basketball quarterfinal on Friday at Bellevue Community College.

"It seemed like it was a different group out there [after Nicol's injury], playing inspired," said Issaquah coach Kathy Gibson. "Until then, we weren't."

The game was suspended for nearly 20 minutes as trainers treated Nicol for a head injury. The 5-foot-10 junior guard, who had a team-high 12 points at the time, has a history of concussions and isn't expected to play again this season.

She was treated and released from a hospital after receiving five stitches to her chin.

"She's a fighter, so it's sad to see her go down," said Issaquah's Alyssa Shoji, the KingCo 3A Player of the Year.

Tuesday night, the Eagles (21-3) play No. 7 Bellevue in a winner-to-state game at BCC, and Nathan Hale (14-9) plays Skyline at Ingraham in a loser-out game.

With 6:05 left in the fourth quarter, Hale junior Teelin Gray, who scored a team-high 16, hit a three-pointer to give the Raiders a 38-37 lead. The Metro League's No. 2-seeded team scored only two points the rest of the game, on a Gray jumper with 22 seconds left.

"Issaquah responded well after the break," said Nathan Hale coach Jerry Jones. "We need to improve on how we respond in similar situations."

The Eagles preserved a slim lead down the stretch, hitting 11 of 14 free throws in the fourth quarter. They were 21 of 27 overall.

"We have to run when we miss them at practice," said Shoji.

Nicol was the team's second-leading scorer this season, averaging 10.4 points. As she was taken off the court, she looked at her coach and said, "I'm sorry."

"I didn't know how to respond," Gibson said. "She was the one busting her butt out there and she was apologizing to me."

Gibson said she expects her experienced team to respond well.

"The other kids are going to get a chance they never had before, so they'll have to step up."

Other game

Bellevue 53, Skyline 41

All-KingCo forward Jenika Swanson scored 23 points with three three-pointers and went 12 of 12 at the free-throw line for the Wolverines (19-4). Teammate Joey Brazen added 15 points and eight rebounds. Brazen's 10 points keyed a 15-0 second-half run as the Wolverines took a 47-30 lead with 5:10 to go. Britlyn Garrett had a team-high 15 points, with three three-pointers, for the Spartans (14-10).