The Sumner High girls had a week to remember in Ketchikan, Alaska, cruising to the championship round of the Clarke Cochrane Christmas Tournament.

The Spartans opened play with easy victories over a pair of Alaskan teams before facing Lake Stevens in the finale. The highly-regarded crew from the Seattle area had all it could handle in the Spartans, needing a 16-14 advantage in the final quarter to register a 58-56 win.

Coach Robert Thayer and his troops flew to Alaska the day after Christmas, played two games in two days and had a free day for sightseeing before Thursday’s tourney finale. The squad returned home Friday.

In Friday’s championship tussle, Sumner enjoyed a 29-28 halftime lead over their Class 4A foes. The score was knotted at 42 after three quarters of play.

Kaitlin King led the Sumner offense with 16 points, Angie Sanchez added 15 and Erika Olson contributed 11.

To earn their championship appearance, the Spartans defeated the team from Soldotna, Alaska, 64-44 Dec. 28. Sumner jumped to a quick 18-6 lead after one quarter of play and had pushed the margin to 44-25 by the end of the third period. Tyeane Lubking scored 17 points to lead the winners, Olson had 16 and King added 13.

On the tournament’s first day, Sumner defeated Sitka, Alaska, 56-31. The Spartans were never challenged, rolling to a 28-10 halftime lead and a 40-14 advantage after three periods of play. Sanchez scored 12 in the win while King and Ashley Delaney added 10 points apiece.

Thayer said the team had been raising money since summer. Costs were reduced because the Spartans stayed with host families. In addition, tournament organizers supplied $1,500 to help offset travel costs, a step taken to entice out-of-state teams.