WENATCHEE – A staunch defensive effort wasn’t enough for the upset Wednesday, Feb. 19, as the Oroville girls basketball team dropped a hard-fought defensive battle to White Swan, 45-31.

The Hornets held White Swan to 14 points below its average, and its lowest point total since a December lost to Sunnyside Christian, but had to contend with a Cougar defense that was suffocating in its own right.

White Swan used its defense to spur an 11-0 run in the first quarter that snapped a 4-4 tie.

Oroville, which trailed 27-15, fought to get back in the game and pulled to within 38-31 with three minutes to play.

White Swan took advantage of the Hornets’ desperation in the final minutes to score the final seven points.

Lily Hilderbrand scored 12 points, while Kaitlyn Grunst added seven and had about a dozen rebounds to limit White Swan to one shot per possession.

Cayla Jones paced White Swan (18-3) with 15 points as the Cougars won their 16th straight game.

The Hornets (14-7) play Lake Roosevelt at 1:00 p.m. Saturday in a loser-out game, with the winner heading to the regional round of 16.