The White River High girls started the second half of the South Puget Sound League 2A season just as they kicked off the first – with a resounding defeat of the Orting Cardinals.

The Hornets thumped the visitors Friday night, rolling to an easy, 70-22 victory in Buckley. When the two met in December in the league opener, the final verdict was 74-16.

With Friday’s victory, White River’s girls improved to 8-0 in league play and 12-1 overall. The only setback came Jan. 10 to a tough squad from W.F. West High in Chehalis.

In rolling past Orting, coach Chris Gibson was able to give everyone some playing time. Eight Hornets cracked the scoring column and White River received more than half its points – 37 in all – from nonstarters.

Amanda Lance, who will be playing for Western Washington University a year from now, finished with a game-high 16 points. Kayla  Howard and Georgia Lavinder came off the bench to score 10 each.

Simple numbers tell the story behind White River’s rise to the top. During their first 13 games of the season the Hornets averaged slightly more than 68 points per outing; at the same time, the team was giving up barely more than 36 points a night.As a perennial power, White River certainly doesn’t get overlooked. The Hornets have hovered among the top-ranked Class 2A teams in the state this season, according to the Associated Press.