FIFE — Forcing 29 turnovers, Elma remained unbeaten by topping Fife in a non-league contest, 54-38, Saturday at Fife.

Jalyn Sackrider scored 19 points and Quin Mikel added 13. But it was Elma’s defense that told the story as the Eagles (12-0) topped a Class 2A Fife team that entered the contest with a 7-4 record.

Sackrider pulled down 16 rebounds and also blocked five shots.

Elma scored the game’s opening eight points. Fife closed a 13-point halftime deficit to seven in the third quarter before the Eagles re-established control.

“We finished 2017 on a strong note and we are looking forward to league play,” Elma coach Lisa Johnson said.

The Eagles trek to Forks for their Evergreen 1A League opener on Tuesday.

Elma 13 15 12 14 — 54

Fife 8 7 16 7 — 38

Elma (54) — Sackrider 19, Burgher 2, Sutherby 5, Olson 2, Johnson 2, Mikel 13, Johnston 2, Rambo 8.

Fife (38) — Willis 7, Fietz 14, Hernandez 2, Breland 3, Hunter 9, Springer 1, Wise 2.

Eagles 72, T-Birds 53

ELMA — Starting the game with a 15-0 run, Elma’s unbeaten girls cruised to a 72-53 victory over Tumwater last Thursday night at home.

Elma maintained its perfect start to the season and is now 11-0.

Tumwater seemed overwhelmed by Elma’s offensive attack from the opening tip as the Eagles relied on their bigs to get points in the paint.

The Eagles also had success using a zone press on defense, forcing turnovers that led to quick points. With the Eagles flying all over to court to get in passing lanes and contest shots, Tumwater didn’t get on the board until there was 2:34 left in the first quarter.

Elma head coach Lisa Johnson said she was pleased with the interior offense and the ball movement in the first half.

“I thought our bigs played really well tonight,” she said. “They had good back-door cuts and they were finishing well around the hoop. The inside-out ball movement was there and we were really fluid in the first half.”

The fluid flow of the offense helped three players get into double figures. Quin Mikel led the team with 19 points. Jalyn Sackrider gave the Tumwater defense fits on the inside and ended up with 14 points while drawing a number of fouls.

Molly Johnston had a solid game of scoring with 12 points but arguably her biggest contribution came on the boards. Johnston led the team with 10 rebounds, including five offensive rebounds.

Outsized on the inside, Tumwater relied on the three-ball to keep the score from getting out of hand. The Thunderbirds got open looks when they swung the ball along the perimeter and came away with nine threes in the game, which accounted for more than half of their scoring.

Luckily for Elma, Tumwater’s outside shooting never really swung the momentum. But Johnson would have liked to see better closeouts on Tumwater’s shots from beyond the arch.

“All we were saying was defend the three but for whatever reason the team was not focusing on it,” she said. “That’s something we have to get better at because there a lot of other teams that can shoot just as well.”

With the game heading towards its inevitable conclusion Elma was able to empty the bench and give some of its starters a rest ahead of the team’s next matchup against Fife on Saturday.

Fife will bring some size onto the court that could make scoring inside more difficult.

Tumwater 9 8 14 22 — 53

Elma 21 14 23 14 — 72

Tumwater (53) — Koelsch 16, Fields 19, Cunningham 9, Jelcick 7, Seaton 2. FG— 14-55 (.254). FT — 11-26.

Elma (72) — Sackrider 14, Bieker 3, Burgher 3, Sutherby 4, Mikel 19, Olson 4, Johnson 6, Johnston 12, Rambo 7. FG — 24-83 (.289). FT — 18-28.