YAKIMA — Five Whatcom teams were still standing in the 1A/2A state basketball tournament heading into the quarterfinal round Thursday.
Follow along here for updates from the tournament as games are completed.
No. 2 Nooksack Valley girls 50, No. 9 Wapato 37
Jitters, bright lights, a feisty Wapato defense, whatever you want to call it, the No. 2 Nooksack Valley Pioneers started a smidge slower than planned in Yakima during the 1A state quarterfinals. But the thing about starts is they give way to middles. The Pioneers had that figured out while holding on for a 50-37 victory over the No. 9 Wolves.
Nooksack Valley used a 6-0 run late in the first half to build a 27-19 advantage at the break and then a 10-0 run that lasted over five minutes in the third to crack open a healthy 18-point lead.
Wapato eventually clawed back to within 10 with under three minutes in the game, but the Pioneers held on late into the evening in the final game of the day inside the Yakima Valley SunDome.
“We have been here since Tuesday, so it feels good to finally play and play here for the first time,” sophomore Devin Coppinger said. “It was good to make one, see it go in and get our flow going.”
The undersized Wolves came out with plenty of pressure. Coppinger received the bulk of the attention, routinely drawing double- and triple-teams early. She was held without a field goal until 1:08 left in the first half, but offensive adjustments that saw her cutting to the hoop and defensive pressure that got her in the open floor created scoring chances in the second half. She led the Pioneers with 15 points.
“I think that Devin wanted to get to the hoop, and [Wapato] had a lot of help there,” said Shane Wichers, Nooksack Valley head coach. “We needed to get the ball moving and keep it simple.”
Early on it was senior Tehya Moore keeping the Pioneers engaged. She had nine first-half points. Nooksack Valley used a size advantage to out-rebound Wapato 27-10 in the first half and 50-26 for the game.
“One of our big goals is o-boards,” Coppinger said. “Every second shot we get is another chance to score.”
The spurt at the end of the first half was a taste of what ended up being a game-deciding third quarter, which the Pioneers dominated 13-4. Coppinger scored six quick points and 3-pointers by junior Hallie Kamphouse and senior Ellie VanBerkum helped separate the teams.
Wichers said the early-game jitters were softened by playing their style and getting into a flow.
“It doesn’t matter what you do, the first time you play on this court is hard,” he said. “We persevered well.”
While holding a comfortable lead much of the second half, Wapato had a late scoring frenzy, led by junior Kayana Bass. The Wolves cut the lead to 10 points with under three minutes to play, but a Coppinger lay-in quelled the late surge.
Nooksack Valley slowed down quick-moving freshman guard Trinity Wheeler after an initial first-quarter outburst of six points. She ended the game with nine points. Bass was the most consistent scorer for the Wolves, leading Wapato with 20 points, including 10 in the fourth quarter.
Along with Coppinger’s scoring, she added a team-high nine rebounds. Moore ended with nine points, all in the first half, and seven rebounds. Kamphouse had eight points and six rebounds and senior McKenna Wichers had seven points and eight rebounds.
Nooksack Valley’s late-night schedule continues in the semifinals. The Pioneers will take on the No. 3 Cashmere Bulldogs at 9 p.m. tomorrow. The winner wraps up the state tournament with the 9 p.m. championship on Saturday, a game the Pioneers haven’t played in since their lone appearance in 1985.
“We will have the same routine,” Moore said. “We will eat a good breakfast, stay hydrated and come back ready to play tomorrow.”
No. 2 Lynden boys 72, No. 8 Sehome 60
With Lynden and Sehome put against each other in the quarterfinals, there was one Whatcom County team that wouldn’t be advancing to the semis.
Meeting for the third time this season, it was the Lions who emerged victorious, 72-60, to improve to 3-0 against the Mariners.
The deep ball was falling early for the Lions and they jumped out to a 22-13 lead in the first quarter.
A 7-0 run by Sehome in the second quarter tied the game at 26-26, but the overall depth and state tournament experience of the Lions began to shine.
Lynden outscored Sehome 18-6 the rest of the quarter to take a 44-32 lead into halftime.
Lions coach Brian Roper said there was no special plan for Sehome this time around.
“The state tournament is more of a player’s game,” Roper said. “As a coach you can’t orchestrate and dictate as many things offensively and defensively. We fully expected Sehome to play better than they did against us the first two times.”
While this game was the closest on the scoreboard this season between Lynden and Sehome, the Lions showed why they’re the No. 2 seed in the tournament.
Sophomore Anthony Canales stole the show with 29 points to go with seven rebounds. He shot 9-14 from the field and hit three of his four 3-point attempts.
“I’m a confident player, so I’m going to keep shooting the ball whether I miss or not,” Canales said. “I was confident and my shots happened to fall.”
Canales was dangerous from every spot he shot from, leaving the Mariners without many ways to try and slow him down.
“Anthony Canales brought his A-game,” Roper said. “Clearly, the moment wasn’t too big for him. He hit shots, was able to get to the rim and he just really did a nice job of mixing it up with threes, mid-range and attacking the basket.”
Sehome was led offensively by junior Grant Kepley who scored 15 points and pulled down seven rebounds. Senior Gavin Ortega and junior Mathew Storms each scored 14.
Mariners coach Skyler Gillispie gave credit to the Lions’ offense.
“I think when anyone shoots the ball that well in the Dome they’re going to be hard to beat,” Gillispie said.
Despite the loss, Sehome’s season is still alive. The Mariners will play No. 5 Tumwater in a loser-out game at 2 p.m. tomorrow. A win there would have Sehome playing Saturday for fourth or sixth-place.
“We’re a young team, so I think they’re hungry to keep playing and get better,” Gillispie said. “We’re going to go out there, play hard and have fun.”
Lynden advances to the semifinals tomorrow and will play No. 3 R.A. Long at 9 p.m. It will be the sixth consecutive appearance in the semifinals for the Lions.
No. 1 Lynden Christian girls 44, No. 7 Colville 34
The Lynden Christian girls are familiar with the Yakima Valley SunDome.
The last time the Lyncs left the court in Yakima, they were lifting the state championship gold ball trophy in 2020. They’re looking to do it again by the end of the weekend.
The Lyncs checked off one box toward their quest for a repeat with a 44-34 win over Colville Thursday night in the quarterfinals.
Lynden Christian’s offense found its rhythm early. The Lyncs held a 15-5 lead after one quarter and 31-17 lead at halftime.
Senior Libby Stump and freshman Grace Hintz tore up the Crimson Hawks’ defense in the first half, accounting for 27 of the Lyncs’ 31 points at the break.
“Both of them work extremely hard and watching them play it’s clear that they are confident because of the preparation they’ve done throughout their lives,” Lyncs coach Brady Bomber said.
It wasn’t completely smooth sailing for the Lyncs the rest of the way.
Lynden Christian was held to just 13 points in the second half. With the offense stalling, the Lyncs turned to their stingy defense to keep them ahead.
“We weren’t moving the ball around as much,” Stump said. “I think our offense wasn’t as smooth as we were in the first half, but our defense saved us. I like how hard we played and competed against them.”
The biggest moment of the second half might have been senior Alli Van Kooten checking into the game late in the fourth quarter.
Van Kooten fully tore her ACL against Lynden Jan. 27 and hadn’t suited up since then.
“I got cleared to play two to three minutes,” Van Kooten said. “It means so much. I’m so grateful for my teammates and to be able to even get the chance.”
The win puts the Lyncs into the semifinals against No. 4 Montesano and one step closer to their fourth straight championship game appearance.
Hintz led all scorers with 18 points and also hauled in seven rebounds. Stump scored 17 and Reganne Arnold added five points.
Hintz said finally getting on the court to play in the state tournament after watching for so many years was surreal.
“When I was walking on the court and looking up I was like, ‘This is actually happening,'” she said.
Bomber called Hintz a special basketball player.
“When you see a kid that’s that driven and dreamed of being on this stage for a long time she’s not surprised and we’re not surprised that she’d come out here and play her best,” Bomber said. “She’s put the time in to give herself a chance and have the confidence to do that.”
Lynden Christian will play the Bulldogs at 7:15 p.m. tomorrow with a trip to the state title game up for grabs.
No. 2 Lynden Christian boys 67, No. 8 Quincy 44
The Lyncs are moving on.
A convincing 67-44 win over Quincy in the quarterfinals puts Lynden Christian back in the 1A semifinals and it never looked like the Lyncs were in danger.
The Lyncs scored the first seven points of the game, immediately capitalizing on the advantages they had over the Jackrabbits.
Lynden Christian coach Tim Zylstra said they wanted to establish themselves inside from the get go, so they turned to senior Andrew Hommes.
“That kind of set the tone for us,” Zylstra said.
By the end of the first quarter, the Lyncs led 17-8 and they held a comfortable lead the rest of the way.
Junior Tyler Sipma drilled a 3-pointer right before halftime to put an emphatic end to the first half and the Lyncs’ dominance for a 34-18 lead.
An emphasis was put on Quincy senior TreyVaughn Bierlink, who had scored 31 points the day before against Blaine. He finished the game with nine points.
Zylstra said the initial plan was to rotate defenders on him, but after Bierlink managed only three shot attempts in the first half with Lyncs senior Crew Bosman guarding him, they weren’t going to change anything there.
“Crew just kept going and playing good defense,” Zylstra said. “The kid only shot three shots in the first half, so it was like, ‘Crew, you’re taking him the rest of the way.'”
Hommes echoed Zylstra’s sentiment.
“[Bosman] is one of the best defenders I’ve ever played with,” Hommes said. “He took it personally. He took it and did more than what we could’ve asked him for. Crew just played so well.”
Quincy didn’t find any answers at halftime and Lynden Christian was on cruise control in the second half which was capped off with a Hommes dunk late in the fourth quarter.
Hommes was a force inside and on the glass for the Lyncs all game as he led the team with 24 points and 14 rebounds for a double-double. Sipma nearly recorded his own double-double with 21 points and eight rebounds. Bosman added 11 points in the win.
“[Quincy doesn’t] have as much size as us, but they play with a lot of heart,” Hommes said. “They out-rebounded us for a little bit there, but we had to come out here and work as hard as we can. I love this team. I wouldn’t want to be here with anyone else.”
The win puts the Lyncs in the semifinals tomorrow at 5:30 p.m. where they’ll play No. 3 Life Christian Academy.
