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The new kid on the block had a reputation. She backed it up Saturday night. Colfax, which had 16 trophies in 20 previous appearances in the State 1A girls basketball tournament, made its 2B debut a successful one, rolling past Napavine 56-35 in the championship game Saturday night at the Arena.
If would seem like there should be a certain amount of pressure that comes with being the cover subject on a state tournament program.
Full-court, full-time.The pressure started at the opening tip of Napavine's 52-42 win over La Salle in the first semifinal game of the State 2B girls basketball tournament at the Arena Friday and didn't end until Colfax dispatched White Pass 54-33 in the second.
Liberty Chr. 52, Quilcene 34
Senior Mark Wilson led Liberty Christian with 19 points and senior Joey Lane added 10 as the Patriots beat Quilcene to advance to the fifth-place game.
Bi-County League fans ended up with the title game of their dreams Friday night when conference rivals Northwest Christian and Davenport both posted semifinal-round wins at the Arena to advance to tonight's championship showdown of the State 2B boys basketball championship.
Pomeroy 60, Entiat 53
Taelor Braun scored 21 points and grabbed 15 rebounds for Pomeroy, paving the way for a trophy finish today for the first time in school history. The Pirates will play Orcas Island for fifth and eighth places.
Defending state champion? Check.Runner-up, now top-ranked and undefeated? Check.Drop-down team that bullied foes at the higher level? Check.
If school administrators did indeed fix what wasn't broken when they split the State B basketball tournament in half, just wait until they try to reconstruct Humpty Dumpty.
Coaches are constantly preaching about playing one game at a time.But when the elephant in the corner of the room is an unbeaten three-time defending state champion, it can be almost impossible to ignore. That's true, even if it's not your most immediate challenge – and especially when that elephant has already stomped on you four times.
Sometimes, when a program from a small high school goes more than two decades between appearances in the state tournament, first-hand advice on what to expect once you finally make it back can be hard to find.
Kim Gahan, the wife of Summit High School coach Jay Gahan, was waiting anxiously outside the Invaders' team room following Wednesday morning's 49-46 loss to Adna in the opening round of the State 2B boys basketball championship at the Arena.
Even though the State 1B basketball tournament was last week in Yakima, the Garfield-Palouse girls still considered themselves a defending state champion entering the State 2B tournament.
So what would "Hoosiers" look like set in 2009?Well, in 50-plus years, basketball has evolved into a "city" game, so it has to have an urban setting, and yet the school must still be small, overlooked, an underdog. The basketball team isn't necessarily the social focal point anymore and academics are no longer simply the three traditional R's, so hoops must compete for a kid's attention with the steel band and drama. Instead of Myra Fleener looking after Jimmy Chitwood, there's a family support worker on staff. Economic pressures are blowing up budgets, so perhaps the school is being closed by a cold-hearted board of education. Naturally, to round out the plot the basketball team has to endure its own adversity – say a 1-7 start to the season, and come February it dawns on the players that each game could be their last.
Last year's loss to Garfield-Palouse in the State 1B girls basketball tournament stung Colton, which had finished first in league over the Vikings in the regular season.
Corey Baerlocher has known nothing but success since taking over the girls basketball program at Colfax after the 2002 season.
Northwest Christian starts after its fourth-straight State 2B boys basketball championship and sixth straight state trophy at 4 p.m. Wednesday when the tournament opens at the Spokane Arena.
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