The Seaside girls basketball team clamped down on a pesky Marist Catholic team on March 7 to post a 54-46 win in the first round of the state 4A basketball tournament.

With the win, the Seagulls earned a spot in the state tournament, which began Thursday in Forest Grove.

The victory was Seaside’s first playoff win since its 53-40 triumph over Marshfield to claim the third-place trophy in the 2017 state tournament. That team was led by future Division I player Maddi Utti and featured current head coach Marla Olstedt on staff as an assistant.

“I’m speechless,” Olstedt said after the win. “It’s something we haven’t done here in awhile. This group persevered through (the) momentum swings that the game of basketball is all about. … It was an absolute team effort — we didn’t play our best basketball, in all actuality — but the thing about this group is they never stop playing.”

“They’re excited and I think the community’s excited, and that showed tonight,” she said. “It’s been great support all year long, so we are fortunate.”

Marist Catholic put up a fight, racking up seven three-pointers in the first half and taking a seven-point lead in the second half. But behind a big basket from Lili Miller and two Carly Corder splashes from behind the three-point arc, the Seagulls pulled away in the fourth quarter.

Once the Seagulls got the lead, they iced the game from the free-throw line, where they made 18 of 23 attempts. Mya Feeney went 14-for-14 from the charity stripe. Feeney led the team in scoring with 21 points and Corder added 19.

The March 7 victory against Marist allowed the Seagulls a measure of revenge against the Spartans. The teams played on Dec. 30, in a game the Spartans won, 53-43. Olstedt said having more film and being able to scout helped in the rematch. Despite Marist making nine three-pointers during the rematch, the Seagulls were able to force turnovers and held the Spartans without a two-point goal for the entire first half.

Tipoff for the Seaside-Stayton game is scheduled for 8:15 p.m. Thursday at Forest Grove High School. Seaside brings a 14-9 overall record into the game. Stayton, the No. 2 seed, is 24-1. The game was scheduled for after the Signal’s press deadline, but results will be posted on the newspaper’s website.

Astoria girls fall to Crook County

Crook County rode a big second half to beat the Astoria girls basketball team, 59-46, in a first-round 4A playoff game March 7 in Prineville.

The Fishermen took a 27-20 halftime lead but watched it unravel as the Cowboys switched to a full-court press in the third quarter. The Cowboys outscored the Fishermen 22-8 in the third quarter to take control of the game.

Foul trouble for Astoria’s Malory Dundas didn’t help the team’s cause, but Dundas still led the Fishermen with 12 points in the senior’s last game. Emery Young added 11 points and Brooklyn Avalon had 10 for Astoria.

The Fishermen end their season with a 14-10 record.