UPDATED Feb. 5, 8:30 a.m.

The Quilcene girls’ basketball team used a 7-game win streak to get into playoff contention, and Port Townsend hosts Chimacum in a rivalry game Saturday to end the regular season. Here’s the wrap as of Feb. 1:

LOUD & PROUD

A loud and proud crowd at the Chimacum High School gym Jan. 29 saw the Lady Redhawks get out front of the hosts and hold off a late rally for a 39-35 Olympic League victory.

Townsend won this season’s Janelle Perillo Memorial traveling trophy with the second win against Chimacum; CHS won the series last season, and ousted PT from the playoffs at the same time. This season’s trio of league games between the rivals is concluded as the Olympic League finale Saturday, Feb. 6 at PTHS.

The PT girls (3-5 league, 6-12 overall) lost 51-39 Tuesday to Coupeville, and lost 42-38 at home Thursday to Klahowya (4-4). PT has dropped into the league's No. 3 position.

Even if PT finishes Saturday with a win at 7 p.m. Saturday against Chimacum, the Lady Redhawks would tie Klahowya in league standings but would be the No. 3 seed by having lost two of three to the Eagles.

Chimacum lost 63-34 Feb. 2 at Klahowya, ans fell 48-24 Thursday to Coupeville (8-0).

Coupeville has the league title sewn up; the No. 2 Olympic team hosts a district qualifying game Feb. 11. The No. 3 team hosts the Nisqually No. 4 team for a qualifying game Feb. 11. The district tourney starts Feb. 17 at Sumner High School.

PT AT CHIMACUM

The first quarter of the Jan. 29 game ended in a 9-9 tie, and PT began to pull away in the second quarter for a 17-13 halftime lead. Townsend built a 10-point lead in the third quarter, and was up by 7 with 3:20 remaining. CHS made some shots, PT missed more free throws, and senior Nicole Cerna drained a trey from the top of the key with 30 seconds left to pull CHS within 36-35. Kassie Olin made 1 free throw for PT for a 37-35 margin with 25 seconds left. CHS missed the front end of a one-and-one opportunity. A PT player was at the foul line with 12 seconds left, and missed both shots. Jenna Carson rebounded the second miss, passed outside to Jaz Apker-Montoya, and the frosh swished an outside shot for a 39-35 lead in the game’s waning seconds.

Townsend could have put the game away earlier, but made only 3 of 19 free throws.

“This was a gut-it-out game from start to finish,” said PT coach Scott Wilson. “The special rivalry between these two teams was in plain view. It was messy and tough from the jump ball. We don’t have much to brag about in terms of execution – way too many bad passes, turnovers and poor free-throw shooting. But we have a lot to be proud of in terms of heart and fight. There was no quit in the face of pressure, self-imposed and imposed by the Cowboys.”

Wilson found positives in team rebounding, defense, and that “almost every player came through at some critical moment with a big play – a steal, a hit shot, fighting for a jump ball. But we have to hit free throws and improve our passing game as we head into the final week of league play.”

Chimacum coach Trevor Huntingford said PT used their taller size to good advantage in what he said was a “classic” Town-Chimacum game, complete with a rowdy crowd. “Everybody was scrapping for the ball. The game was a classic, right down to the wire.”

Huntingford wishes his team had more team wins to show for their effort this season.

“It was not what we thought it would be,” he said. “We were snake bit with injuries," including the season-long absence of 6-foot-0 center Alice Yaley with a foot injury. Injuries, illness and travel have caused the top six players to miss a combined 150 quarters.

Still, the girls have been gamers, Huntingford said. CHS downed Klahowya 47-40 on Jan. 22 and played Coupeville tight into the fourth quarter of a 48-34 loss Jan. 26. There were many encouraging signs Jan. 29 against PT.

“I thought we played really poorly against PT the first time we played them, and we played well this time,” Huntingford said last Friday night. “Hopefully we finish out strong this week and Saturday’s rematch [with PT] is for the playoffs.”

STATS: PT: Jaz Apker-Montoya 19 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, Kassie Olin 5, Kaitlyn Meek 5P, 10 RB, 3 steals; Eileen Leoso 4P, 4S, 4 assists, Jenna Carson 4P, 7 RB; Karlee Kellogg 2. CHS: Shanya Nisbet 10, Mechelle Nisbet 9, Nicole Cerna 8, Bailey Castillo 4, Grace Yaley 1.

PT vs KLAHOWYA

PT’s defense was the difference in a 30-23 win over Klahowya Jan. 26. The Eagles won the first game Jan. 13, 46-42.

The key to victory was the defensive combination of Eileen Leoso and Karlee Kellogg, who held Klahowya sharpshooter Maya Ladner to a single trey. “There was great team defense throughout,” said coach Wilson, “and we needed it. The Eagles also clamped down on us.”

Jordyn King and Kassie Olin got the Redhawks’ scoring going in the first half, with Kaitlyn Meek helping build a 5-point lead to start the 4th quarter. “The final period was a mad scramble most of the time, but our defense held up and we are showing better discipline with the ball,” said Wilson. “Olin hit a couple key free throws. We needed them, because Klahowya is both tough and explosive.”

SCORING: Meek 10, King 6, Olin 6, Apker-Montoya 2, Leoso 2, Carson 2, Kellogg 2.

QUILCENE GIRLS SEEK TOP 6

Quilcene (5-4 league, 10-9 overall) is on track to finish with one of the SeaTac League’s six playoff slots thanks to a 7-game winning streak.

Evergreen Lutheran is on track to be league champion with Seattle Lutheran No 2. The last four playoff spots are up for grabs between five teams: Quilcene, Mt. Rainier Lutheran, Rainier Christian, Shorewood Christian and Northwest Yeshiva.

Tuesday, Feb. 2 Quilcene (5-4) lost 56-45 to Mt. Rainier Lutheran (6-2). The Lady Rangers (5-4 league) won’t know if they finished No. 5 or No. 6 in league until Shorewood Christian (4-3) finishes with games on Friday at third-place Mt. Rainier Lutheran and Saturday at seventh-place Northwest Yeshiva. Quilcene holds the tie-breaker edge of Shorewood Christian.

The league’s top 2 teams advance to the 1B Tri-District tourney starting Feb. 13 at various locations on both sides of Puget Sound. The other four entries match with District 1 teams in loser-out games, winners to tri-district. The No. 6 SeaTac team plays a loser-out game Feb. 9 at Port Angeles, and that winner plays the District 1 No. 1 team Feb. 11. Only the SeaTac No. 3 team hosts a game, one of four set Feb. 11.

The Quilcene girls dropped a non-league game Thursday at home to Mary M. Knight, 58-56.

TWO-POINT GAMES

Last week, Quil split a pair of two-point games, defeating Shorewood Christian 52-50 and falling to second-place Seattle Lutheran 47-45.

Quilcene went over the half-century mark for the fourth straight game with a 52-50 victory at Shorewood. The host Lions led most of the way. Quilcene made a defensive adjustment at halftime, and SC post player Shelaine Lorenz only scored 6 in the second half after hitting for 18 in the first half.

“The Rangers did a nice job of scrapping and hustling and never letting down,” coach Briana Weller said, and recorded only 11 turnovers while being 10/10 on free throws, and snaring 41 total rebounds.

“We have come so far since the first of the season,” Weller said. “This group of girls has been the best. They have matured in their skill sets quicker than any other group that I have coached here in Quilcene. They are a motivated bunch. They should be proud of how much they accomplish week after week.”

SCORING: Megan Weller 30 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, Allison Jones 8P, 6A, McKenzie Kieffer 4P, 5R, Abby Weller 14R, Sydney Brown 6P, 7R, 2A, 1S, Asia Terzi 7R.

A few defensive lapses and some poor offensive executions were the difference in a 47-45 loss Jan. 29 at second-place Seattle Lutheran. “We had a chance to come away with a win and just came up short,” Weller said. “We were so, so close,” but could not contain star guard Abbi Sanders, who finished with 26 points.

SCORING: M. Weller 23P, Jones 10P, Kieffer 7P, 8R, 2B, 1S, A. Weller 2P, 19R, 6A, 1B, 1S, Alexis Gray 3P, 7R, Brown 3R, 3A, 1S.