Enumclaw Boys Hoops 2nd Half Rally Overtakes Auburn Mountainview 57-55

D.J. Hitch's team-high 14 points, along with Dylan Fitzpatrick's 13 points which included the game-winning lay-up with 14.5 seconds left in the game, saw to Enumclaw's (8-12) victory Tuesday night as they rallied from a 19-point deficit to defeat the Auburn Mountainview Lions 57-55 in a South Puget Sound League 3A tiebreaker game for the 3rd and 4th seeds in this weekend's sub-district playoffs.

With this win, Enumclaw secured the more favorable matchup on Saturday, earning the number three seed.

"This was an unbelievable win," Enumclaw coach Ted Carlson said.

The Hornets came out early and jumped out to an 8-0 lead in the first three minutes of the game. However, Auburn Mountainview (9-12) answered with a dominating 24-1 run to put the Lions up 24-9 midway through the second quarter, paced by the outside shooting of Marlon Beauchamp and their ability to control the offensive glass.

"[Auburn Mountainview] really put the pressure on us with their energy and second chance shots," Carlson said. 

In the third quarter, the Hornets fell behind 37-18. Enumclaw still had plenty of time and went to work by attacking the basket with Hitch down in the post and Fitzpatrick's senior leadership on the perimeter to get back into the contest.

"At halftime, coach challenged us," said Fitzpatrick. "They were playing with more heart than us. We started focusing on attacking the basket and controlling the boards in the second  half and it helped us outwork them to get the win."

Carlson said, "[Patrick] Putman and [Will] Holland really gave us a spark with their defensive pressure up top against them."

He also lauded the defensive efforts of Terrenn Houk who held Auburn Mountainview star Beauchamp to just 22 points.

"[Terrenn] did a nice job on Beauchamp defensively always keeping a hand in his face making him work for everything he got," Carlson said.

With 29.9 seconds left and the Lions still leading 55-54, the Hornets secured a clutch rebound after a missed Auburn Mountainview free throw. Enumclaw turned to Fitzpatrick, whose driving lay-up through the Lions defense gave the Hornets the lead at 56-55 with 14.5 seconds left.

"I always want the chance for the last shot with the game on the line," Fitzpatrick said. "My teammates did a great job of getting the rebound and I took the shot and made it."

Carlson said, "Dylan's getting to free throw line relying on the drive and making free throws for us really helped us. It was a great performance in the second half by him."

The Hornets will now get an extra day to prepare for their sub-district opponent. "We will have a chance to recoup and work on some things from tonight," Houk said. "The rest will help us and we will come out hard on Saturday." 

Carlson said, "This is good for us because now we will know who our opponent is beforehand. This experience from tonight, beating a good Auburn Mountainview team, should help us during the rest of the playoffs."

Enumclaw will play the winner of the Bonney Lake/Bremerton game Friday night on Saturday afternoon at 4:15 p.m. in  the SPSL/Seamount/Bremerton Sub-District Playoffs.

Box Score

Enumclaw- 9|9|22|17--57

Auburn Mountainview 17|18|10|10--55

Scoring

Enumclaw- Hitch 14, Fitzpatrick 13, Houk 10, Foerster 8, Jacobson 6, Holland 4, A.Chynoweth 2

Auburn Mountainview- Beauchamp 22, Leatherman 13, Upchurch 5, Green 5, Kline 4, Sleezer 4, Houck 2

Team Fouls: Enumclaw 19, Auburn Mountainview 20