HS Girls Basketball: Second Half Domination Leads to Blow Out Win for Gig Harbor

(12/18/25)

In a PSL Narrows battle between two of the top teams in the league, Gig Harbor came to take on Silas on the road. In what was a neck-and-neck first half, major adjustments were made at halftime for the Tides that swung the momentum their way, and they never looked back. Gig Harbor came into the game 3-2 with dominant victories under their belt and extremely competitive losses. Silas was 4-1 coming into this game, with most of their wins coming by blowout. Both teams had strong starts to their season, but the Tides put on a show on the road to come away with the big league win.

First Half

The first half was a battle of the point guards, it seemed as Silas’ Annique Smith and Gig Harbor’s Kaliyah Miller went blow for blow with one another. Smith started the game with a strong driving layup to give the first points to the Rams. Miller would respond with back-to-back three-pointers of her own and get her night from the arc started early. The Rams started to get good looks in the half-court setting, with Smith leading the charge. Drawing fouls and getting paint touches for some nice finishes as well as offensive rebounds, which were a big part of Silas’ first-half success. The Tides also started to produce in their half-court sets as well as get good looks on fast breaks. Annique Smith started to catch fire for Silas, however, and began to take over the game with a three as well as an and-one layup. Gig Harbor led 16-11 after the first quarter.

Annique Smith did not stop in the second quarter as she put on an onslaught of offense, particularly when driving to the paint as well as mixing in the three-ball. Ashlyn Pierce for Gig Harbor also started to get into a rhythm with an early mid-range jump shot and a couple of assists as she began to take over more of the point guard duties. The Rams started to slowly dig into the Tide’s lead with a nice pick and roll for a Olivia Tiggs finish and a three-pointer from Emerie Kennedy. Silas would take the lead with a steal from Annique Smith and a fast break layup. Smith continued to feed her scorers and poured on the points. Silas entered halftime with a 31-30 lead over Gig Harbor.

Second Half

The third quarter marked a significant turning point for the Tides, and they began to dominate the game seemingly out of nowhere. Their defense began to be impenetrable, which led to many turnovers from Silas, and Gig Harbor capitalized on the fast break. Another change the Tides made was to make Ashlyn Pierce the primary point guard for the rest of the game and have Kaliyah Miller float on the wing. Gig Harbor had figured out how to handle the pressure of Silas and began to be surgical on the offensive end.

Kaliyah Miller got hot once again in the third, with many free throws and a couple of driving layups. Ashlyn Pierce also hit a couple of nice jump shots for the Tides to start running away with the game. Silas began to get into foul trouble and would send Gig Harbor to the free throw on multiple occasions. The most impressive part of the third quarter for the Tides was their ability to stop Annique Smith, who scored mostly from free throws for a total of 5 points in the quarter. Gig Harbor went into the fourth quarter leading 63-41.

The fourth quarter was very similar to the third for both teams. Gig Harbor had created a deficit too much to overcome and continued to dominate on defense as well as produce offensively. Willow Bonnici, Sarah Cody, and Khloe Squance had impressive fourth quarters on both sides of the ball, and Squance herself had 7 points in the quarter. Gig Harbor would win 78-47 and outscore Silas in the second half 48-16, which is a recipe for success in any game. An outstanding game for the Tides, who are now 4-2 on the season and tied for first in the PSL Narrows.

MVP and Stats

Our Sumner Holiday Inn Express MVP of the game went to Kaliyah Miller, who had 24 points as well as multiple assists and steals. Her three-point game, free-throw shooting, defense, and facilitating were on point all night, and she played a big factor in the Tides’ win. Ashlyn Pierce had 13 points and countless assists as well. Willow Bonnici had 9 points, and Khloe Squance had seven, with both having great games on defense. Sarah Cody had a good defensive game as well as five points.

Silas’ Annique Smith had a game-high 29 points and looked like a one-man wrecking crew at times. She also had multiple steals and did a great job dishing the ball around for some nice assists. Emerie Kennedy had five points on the day, and Jordin Palu-Pinkett had seven as well.

Gig Harbor will be on the road again to face Kentlake on Saturday, December 20th, with a 7:00 pm tip-off. Silas will face Central Kitsap at home on Friday, December 19th, with a 7:00 pm tip-off.

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