Angelica Askey and Brooklynn Swenson knew they would be a package deal when deciding what was next after graduating from Rainier High School last summer.
The duo have been inseparable since Askey transferred from Yelm to Rainier after her freshman year. As the starting backcourt, they helped bring the Rainier Mountaineers a District 4 2B title last season and led them to three straight state tournament bids in their time together.
“We were talking about it back in high school that we wanted to be roommates,” Askey said. “It’s nerve-wracking to go to college without someone you know and having to make new connections. But having Brooklynn there is great.”
Askey and Swenson signed to play basketball at Lower Columbia College for the Red Devils in Longview. They played their closest game to home since finishing their prep careers when LCC played at Centralia College on Jan. 7, helping the Red Devils win comfortably 88-58.
Askey, a starter since the first game of the season, paced LCC with 20 points and showed an improved mid-range attack and controlled the tempo of the game by pushing the ball down the court. Only 17 games into her collegiate career, she ranks in the top 12 in the NWAC in scoring this season at 17 points per game.
“I had to prove myself in practice. I just did what I had to do,” Askey said of earning a starting role.
Swenson’s story is a little different. Her prep career ended late in the Mountaineers’ district title-winning game against Adna at W.F. West on Feb. 22, 2025, when she suffered a ruptured left Achilles late in the game. She couldn’t suit up for Rainier in its much-anticipated state tournament trip with a group of seniors that included Askey, Janess Blackburn and Bryn Beckman, and she also missed her final softball season.
Miraculously, however, Swenson was cleared to play basketball seven months after the injury in early September. Another two months later, she was on the court with the Red Devils playing 15 minutes against Blue Mountain. It was a grueling return to the court when she first began to practice, but Swenson believes she’s nearing full strength now.
“I was really tired. When we had open gyms, I could barely make it up the court,” Swenson said of her first practices after being cleared. “It was hard. Sometimes, my other calf would get really tight, and I think that’s always in the back of my head. I remember the first week of playing basketball, I was scared to jump or do anything. But it’s gotten way better. Working back and getting into basketball shape was really hard, so I’m really proud of that.”
Fans of the Rainier Mountaineers, of which there were plenty in Centralia last week, had the chance to see LCC’s similar playing style to that of Rainier’s under Brandon Eygabroad when Askey and Swenson were perennial All-Central 2B League honorees. There isn’t much wasted time on offense; guards are required to push the ball up the court and find open teammates but have the option and ability to score.
While they both admitted there have been some slight growing pains, Swenson and Askey believe they have a handle on the flow of the collegiate game.
“It’s another level of basketball,” Askey said of playing in the NWAC. “The 2B was a challenge, but college is a bit faster. I think Eygabroad helped us prepare for this level.”
The Red Devils, sitting in first place in the NWAC West at 14-3, are off to their best start since they won the NWAC in 2022. Askey has scored in double figures in all but two games this year and has exceeded 20 points on five occasions, including a career-best 30 against Clark on Dec. 18, 2025.
Swenson has provided a defensive and playmaking presence as a point guard off the bench. Against Centralia College, she showed no hesitation with the ball in her hands, looking like her pre-injury self as she pushed the ball up the court and nabbed two steals and four rebounds.
As for after LCC, Swenson and Askey know that they will likely have to spread apart when they reach a four-year university. Swenson dreams of becoming an elementary teacher, and Askey is pursuing a degree in nursing but is also considering a career in criminal psychology.
“In the long run, we both have different goals of what we want to do. It would be great if we could go together, but if not, it’s been a ride,” Askey said with a laugh. “We’ve known each other for so long.”
