The Columbian | Serving Clark County, Washington

The basketball floated toward its target after its feathery release from the shooter at the free throw line.

Skimming off the front part of the rim, the ball then bounced off the back of the rim, returned to the front and just sat there, almost as if it were deciding what to do next.

In that nanosecond, it was a 50-50 ball. It easily could have fallen off the front end for a miss, or dropped back into the basket, into its home.

Of course, Angela Gelhar was shooting the ball, so of course, the ball found its way into the net.

“I had two of those in a row,” Gelhar said, explaining her two near-misses from last week’s championship game of the Class 3A bi-district tournament.

Gelhar, a junior from Prairie, remembers even the close ones because, well, there are not a lot of those to remember.

Gelhar and the Falcons open play in the Class 3A state girls basketball tournament in Tacoma today, tipping off at 9 a.m. against Lynnwood of Bothell. If it turns into a free throw contest, and Gelhar is on the line for most of those shots, the Falcons will be feeling pretty good about their chances.

In that bi-district title game, she was 10 of 10. In back-to-back games earlier this season, Gelhar was 24 of 25. And for the season, she is 101 of 114 (89 percent).

“I got it from my sister,” Angela said.

Guess that makes sense. Jamey Gelhar, who just completed her college career at St. Martin’s University in Lacey, is the all-time, all-division NCAA leader with consecutive made free throws. Jamey made 78 in a row last year while setting another record with her season percentage of .964.

“During the summer, we shoot a lot together,” said Angela, five years younger than Jamey. “She plays one-on-one against me, helping me out. She has given me hope. I want to be as good as her.”

Angela can shoot more than free throws, too. Twice this season, she has connected on six 3-pointers in a game. Toward the second half of the year, defenses stretched out to contain Gelhar’s long-range abilities, which has given her an added twist to her game: Driving to the hoop.

“I used to be very timid,” Gelhar said. “I was told I was just a shooter. I wanted to prove them wrong.”

The Falcons needed her to do just that. Injuries and a young squad have made for a tough time this year for Prairie on offense.

“We’ve had games when sometimes it’s our only offense,” Prairie coach Al Aldridge said, referring to Gelhar’s ability to get to the line.

“It’s another dimension to her game that she needed to add. I’m happy for her that she took on that challenge,” Aldridge said. “She has been more assertive at putting the ball on the floor and attacking people.”

And with that shooting percentage from the line, Aldridge would love to see even more of that new style from Gelhar.

That would be fine with Gelhar, who missed more free throws earlier in the season than of late.

“I think I just concentrate more, and I knew I had to step up for the team. It used to be, it’s just a free throw. I didn’t think it was that much. Turns out, they mean a lot.”

She also can set aside a rough day shooting from the floor and her free throws. Gelhar struggled for much of the bi-district title game, except for that 10-for-10 performance on the line.

Her routine is the same, every time, the key to consistent free throw shooting.

“I just make sure I’m calm and not rushed,” Gelhar said. “My teammates give me support with their high-fives before and after I shoot it. I just do it for the team.”

Unlike some athletes who try to block out a particular situation, Gelhar likes to remind herself of the importance of the free throws.

“This is going to cost us the game, or it’s going to help us a lot,” she said of some of the things she thinks about when toeing the line. “I like that pressure.”

Her teammates like how she handles that pressure.

Paul Valencia covers high school sports for The Columbian. He can be reached at 360-735-4557 or e-mail at paul.valenciacolumbian.com.

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