Auburn girls head to Tacoma Dome for third straight season
Published 5:57 pm Monday, March 2, 2026
When Jessica Hansen took over the Auburn High School girls basketball program as coach, the Trojans were treading water, coming off a 3-18 season — but had a crop of young players who showed promise.
That team made the state tournament, followed by the next, and now in her third season, Hansen is heading back to the Tacoma Dome for the third straight season.
“A lot of people play their whole career and never get to the Dome. Obviously you have a goal to be there at the end, but you celebrate all the little things along the way. It’s the journey that matters, the memories in the locker room that matter. This group is so close,” Coach Hansen said.
No. 9 Auburn (21-3) took on No. 16 Eisenhower (14-10) in the regional round of the state tournament and cruised to a 61-33 victory over the Cadets on Feb. 28.
“I’m really excited to be there with my teammates for the third year in a row,” Avery Hansen said about her third trip to the Tacoma Dome.
The game was never in limbo. The Trojans got out and ran early as Auburn took a 14-6 lead at the end of the first quarter. Avery Hansen had nine of the Trojans’ 14 points in the first quarter, which was more points than the entire Cadet team combined.
Avery continued to get to her spots and really out-muscle the visitors, as at halftime Hansen still had more points than Eisenhower (15), and Auburn led 30-12 at halftime. “I thought she kept her composure with a lot of contact and tried to play though. She draws a lot of defense and she’s doing a good job of looking for other girls,” Coach Hansen said.
Jordyn Schoenbachler finished with nine points and was Auburn’s second highest scorer this season, but her passing ability was on full display against the Cadets. Her ability to pass has opened up the floor for the Trojans’ offense to work, and especially giving Hansen some relief without the ball in her hands.
“For her to be able to show patience and look for cutters, she is a high-IQ player. She doesn’t like to turn the ball over. Sometimes she plays a little too timid offensively, so it was good to see her take some risks and get the ball inside,” Jessica Hansen said .
Morgan Richardson, Ari Deloney, Schoenbachler and Hansen are the heartbeat of the Trojans and have the playing experience to back it up. Even before Auburn, the four have played together before putting on the green and gold.
“We are really close. We talk a lot and our chemistry has really grown. We know when to step up and get our team together,” Avery Hansen said.
Deloney chipped in with six points in the third quarter to help push the offense as Hansen didn’t record a field goal, but didn’t get held scoreless as she sank four free throws.
Junior Aubrey Scheutzle hadn’t quite cracked the rotation in the regular season, playing sparse minutes night in and night out. But the junior had a quick splash of six points in the second half against the Cadets.
“She works really hard in practice. She knows her time is coming. She just keeps putting in the work in practice. She pushes us and is a really good teammate,” Avery Hansen said.
Auburn will now take on No. 8 Sumner in the round of 12 inside the Tacoma Dome. Sumner, the No. 2 seed in the district, was upset by Kennedy Catholic in the quarterfinals of that tournament before the Lancers took down Auburn in the semifinals.
