A day after pressure — and the Chelan Goats — knocked them into the 1A girls consolation bracket, the Zillah Leopards were having fun. And lots of it.

There was Cassie Ziegler, smiling on a three-on-nobody fast break as she considered her options. There was Felicia Gonzales, grinning sheepishly after passing up a wide-open 3-point attempt and then, when the ball was passed back to her a moment later, burying that 3-ball. There was Tefini Uasike, looking as relaxed as if it was a pickup game on a blacktop court, not a loser-out game at state.

“Today, it seemed like everything just came together and we had fun,” Uasike said after her 9-for-10, 21-point, five-rebound, six-steal performance in Zillah’s 65-48 thumping of Forks.

It certainly looked a lot more fun for the Leopards than the day earlier, when they lost by 10 points to Chelan in a game where they looked and felt ... off.

“This was much different,” said Zillah coach Mindi Winters, whose 20-6 team will face Seattle Academy (18-8) at 9 a.m. Friday for the right to play on trophy Saturday. “I think sometimes it’s like there’s a bubble, a balloon about ready to pop. With so much pressure to win, as a coach you try not to let the kids dwell on that, but ... I kind of feel like the balloon popped and released all that pressure.

“Then it was like, hey, let’s just play our game and have some fun.”

The Leopards had all the fun they needed over a five-minute stretch spanning the second and third quarters, during which they ran off 16 unanswered points. The game never got closer than 13 points the rest of the way.

Forks got a 17-point, eight-rebound, four-steal performance from Forks junior Madison Justus, but little else. Zillah heroes, meanwhile, were everywhere — notably Tiffany Walker, who scored all eight of her points during the second period when the Leopards broke the game open. Rosebud Guthrie racked up six blocks and nine rebounds, while Gonzales contributed 10 points and five assists and Bayli Ziegler added seven points and four assists.

But Uasike’s game really brought a smile to Winters’ face.

“For the seniors, I think it means so much to them, and I think sometimes it’s almost too much of a load,” Winters said. “And for her to have a game like that just makes this extra special.”

Forks -- Obi 1-1 0-0 2, Leppell 2-9 2-2 7, M. Justus 7-17 3-5 17, Steveson 1-7 0-2 2, A. Justus 3-5 0-2 6, Allen 0-0 0-0 0, Borjas 0-1 2-2 2, Gaydeski 0-0 0-0 0, Kennedy 2-4 2-2 6, Klahn 0-2 0-0 0, Dillard 2-5 1-2 5, Pullen 0-0 1-3 1. Totals 18-51 11-20 48.
Zillah -- B. Ziegler 3-10 0-0 7, F. Gonzales 4-7 0-0 10, C. Ziegler 1-3 0-0 2, Sevigny 0-1 0-0 0, S. Gonzales 0-2 1-2 1, Duce 0-0 0-0 0, Uasike 9-10 1-1 21, Patterson 3-14 2-3 9, Walker 3-5 2-4 8, Guthrie 3-11 0-0 6, Cardenas 0-2 1-2 1, Brady 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 26-66 7-12 65.
Forks	12	9	16	11	--	48
Zillah	10	22	17	16	--	65
3-point goals--F 1-10 (Leppell 1-6, Steveson 0-1, A. Justus 0-1, M. Justus 0-2), F 6-16 (Uasike 2-2, F. Gonzales 2-3, Patterson 1-4, B. Ziegler 1-5, Sevigny 0-1, Guthrie 0-1). Rebounds--F 37 (M. Justus 8), Z 44 (Guthrie 9). Assists--F 11 (Steveson 6), Z 19 (F. Gonzales 5, B. Ziegler 4). Steals--F 10 (M. Justus 4), Z 15 (Uasike 6). Blocked shots--F 0, Z 8 (Guthrie 6). Fouled out--None. Total fouls--F 13, Z 20. Technical fouls--None. Turnovers--F 25, Z 22.