After watching the Snohomish junior varsity defeat the M-P jayvees 67-57, the Tomahawk varsity squad was not about to make it 2-for-2 for the visitors.
Thirty-two minutes of play later, the Tommies saw Snohomish walk out of the Jim Linden Fieldhouse with their first loss of the 2006-07 campaign after seeing their defensive efforts pay off in a 60-51 victory.
The Saturday, Jan. 27 Wesco North victory improved M-Ps record to 10-3 in league play and 14-3 overall.
League-leading Snohomish fell to 11-1, 15-1.
I think our defensive intensity was the biggest difference between tonights win and our one-point loss at their place, senior guard Ricky Holm said.
Nate Holthenrichs was 4-for-4 from the free-throw line at the end and I think from start to finish we just played good. Coach told us about coming onto the court with a little bit of a swagger and I think we are definitely capable of having the well-deserved swagger.
Senior forward Sean Moser got the Tommies on the board first for an early 2-0 lead and after Snohomish scored their first hoop University of Portland bound Jared Stohl drained a three-pointer for a 5-2 advantage with 5:30 in the first quarter.
Moser and Eastern Washington University bound Nathan Lozeau each went 2-for-2 from the charity stripe and Holm added a trey to give M-P a 12-7 lead with three minutes remaining in the games first quarter of play.
Stohl completed a three-point play with an acrobatic shot off the backboard and drained the resulting free throw. Rapidly improving senior Joey Fridrich drained the first of his two three-pointers in the contest and junior Taylor Stevens hit an open basket to head into the second quarter with a 20-10 advantage.
Fridrich hit an NBA-length three-pointer to open the lead to 23-10 and chants of Tomahawk power began reigning from the M-P student section.
Holthenrichs, Holm and Lozeau combined for eight points to make it a 31-19 ballgame and after Snohomish responded with a 5-0 run Lozeau finished a three-point play at the foul line for a 10-point cushion at 34-24.
The Panthers added one more hoop before heading to the locker rooms with M-P up 34-26.
Our defensive intensity was way higher this time, second-year coach Bary Gould said of the difference between his teams one-point loss in their first meeting and the nine-point victory.
I think we were ready for them and werent intimidated this time. I told the guys in the locker room to go out and play with no regrets. I told them that anyone who plays in this game will and should give everything they have and leave it on the court.
After Lozeaus first basket of the second half put M-P up 39-30, a timeout was called to try and slow the pace down a bit.
The two teams alternated outscoring each other, with M-P winning the first and third quarters.
The Tommies were paced by Lozeau, Holthenrichs and Stohl combining for the teams 11 points in the third quarter.
M-P took a 45-36 advantage into the final quarter of play and appeared poised to avenge their earlier one-point loss at Snohomish High School.
As the small, yet rowdy Panther student section chanted boring in response to the Tomahawks ball control to kill the clock in the early part of the fourth quarter, the teams went 2:11 before lighting up the scoreboard again.
Gould called a timeout with 3:58 remaining in the league battle and his team ahead 49-41.
Stohl drained two free throws for a 10-point lead and Snohomish responded with a three-pointer for a 51-44 ballgame.
Come on guys pick up the intensity, Holm shouted to his teammates in the final three minutes.
The final stretch ended up being a battle of free throws as both teams were in the bonus with seven fouls apiece.
Lozeau, Holthenrichs and Holm combined to go 7-for-8 from the charity stripe and hand the stunned Panthers their first loss of the 2006-07 campaign.
Gould said he doesnt believe has scored more than 50 points against Snohomish this season, and described the contest as having a playoff feeling to it.
Their crowd was huge and our was supportive and awesome.
He pointed to the play of senior co-captains Stohl and Lozeau, who tend to be more on the quiet side and lead by example.
Sean Moser does all those things that you dont see in the newspaper just a great all-around defensive player.
Coach said the true test of his teams success is how they respond to a big victory like Snohomish, and come out to play in their next game.
M-P travels to Cascade Friday, Feb. 2 to face the Bruins. Junior varsity tips off at 5:40 p.m. and their varsity counterparts at 7:30.


At M-PHS

Snohomish 10 16 9 16 -51
M-P 20 14 11 15 -60

Snohomish Hansen 5, Shilling 7, Bone 9, Low 6, Diederichs 21, Wilde 3.
M-P Holm 9, Stohl 14, Fridrich 6, Holthenrichs 8, Moser 6, Stevens 2, Lozeau 15.
3-point goals Hansen 1, Diedrichs 1, Wilde 1, Holm 2, Stohl 2, Fridrich 2.
Records Snohomish 11-1 in league play and 15-1 overall. M-P 10-3, 14-3.

Friday, Jan. 26
Stohl led the Tommies with 22 points as they finished the season series with a 2-0 sweep of the Bearcats.

At M-PHS

Monroe 14 5 16 13 -48
M-P 16 17 14 20 -67

Monroe Ohlsen 5, Wright 4, Macke 2, Cornelius 5, Campbell 4, Pearl 1, J. Waltman 16, MacIntyre 7, S. Waltman 6.
M-P Holm 13, Stohl 22, Lanphere 4, Holthenrichs 4, Thomason 4, Moser 2, Stevens 7, Lozeau 11.
3-point goals Ohlsen 1, J. Waltman 1, Holm 1, Stohl 3.
Records Monroe 1-11 in league play and 3-13 overall. M-P 9-3, 12-4.

Tuesday, Jan. 23
The Lake Stevens Vikings caught M-P off guard with a 7-point home victory to split the two game series between the schools in 2006-07.

At Lake Stevens H.S.

M-P 13 10 16 15 -54
Lake Stevens 14 7 16 24 -61

M-P Holm 2, Stohl 14, Holthenrichs 13, Moser 9, Lozeau 16.
Lake Stevens Aker 4, Dvorak 15, Bryant 2, Carter 13, Legg 4, Steinruck 4, Pearson 10, Kurisu 2, Stickney 7.
3-point goals Stohl 1, Holthenrichs 3, Moser 1.
Records M-P 8-3 in league play and 12-3 overall. Lake Stevens 8-3, 12-5.