Having not played a game in six days, one might have assumed the Mount Si Wildcats girls’ basketball team would be a bit rusty when they took on the Bothell Cougars. That rust only lasted for moments as the Wildcats broke out to a 13-4 lead after one quarter and never looked back. Mount Si defeated the Kingco 4A conference challenger 45-26 in nonleague action last Friday at Mount Si High School.

Wildcat senior post Nicci Landdeck led all scorers for the second straight game with 18 points, and sophomore guard Whitney Beyerlin chipped in nine points to help the effort. Defense and rebounding by Mount Si, combined with numerous missed opportunities by Bothell, helped the ‘Cats to victory. Junior Anna Denny scored seven points for Bothell to lead its effort, while fellow junior Julie Zubovic added six points in a losing cause.

Wildcat coach Dirk Hansen praised his team for its effort.

“I was a little worried about [the team being rusty]. I thought for sure that we’d have to burn the lungs a couple times down the floor first before we got our feet underneath us, and I’m just proud of the way the girls … they came to play,” said Hansen. “They come to play every night and we’ve got great leadership this year. And our girls believe in our system. They believe in our approach to the game, and you can tell.”

Rebounding was key, as Mount Si posted 28 boards as a team for the game, 20 defensively and eight offensively. Landdeck echoed that, and also praised the defense.

For the complete story, pick up a copy of this week’s Valley Record