SHORELINE — It was a tough season for the Arlington girls basketball team, and its last game of the season was tough too.
Unlike its last four seasons as a state playoff contender, Arlington entered the 3A district tournament this season with a 6-14 record.
“It’s been a tough season, there is no doubt about it,” Arlington coach Joe Marsh said. “It’s rough, we haven’t played the way we wanted to.”
Losing a starting lineup of seniors from last season is what made it hard for Arlington.
“Our inexperience is what hurt us the most this year, and it’s hard to overcome that,” Marsh said.
The Eagles faced the higher-seeded Shorecrest in a loser-out district game Feb. 14, but were ousted from playoff contention losing 56-34. Arlington entered the game after losing the first round to Lynnwood 61-30 Feb. 10.
”Shorecrest played great,” Arlington coach Joe Marsh said. “They knocked down great shots and we didn’t.”
The Eagles were competitive in the first quarter going into the second just trailing 12-10, but Shorecrest put on a scoring clinic in the second quarter outscoring Arlington 20-3.
“The second quarter was the one that killed us,” Marsh said. “We dug ourselves in a hole we couldn’t get out of.”
The Scots coasted the second half to eventually win the game. Arlington did put up 17 points in the final quarter, but Shorecrest’s second-quarter run held to the end.
“The kids worked hard and I’m really proud of them,” Marsh said. “The effort was great the last couple of nights.”
Though a less-than stellar season, Marsh said he has seen some “good stretches” of basketball.
He has seen promise with junior Peyton Brown, Marsh said, who led the Eagles with eight points in their final game.
“She’s a great player, but she’s had a tough season because teams were all over her,” Marsh said. “But I’m really happy with what she’s done this year.”
With new players coming into the program, Marsh is focused on getting Eagles back on track, he said.
“We got some younger kids coming in, and we’re going to try to get better,” Marsh said. “Our job this summer is to get better individually with our skill, and get better as a team keep—working on getting back to where we been.”
