The Washington Interscholastic Activities Association announced its matchups for the regional round of its state basketball tournaments Sunday afternoon.
Montesano’s girls team — ranked No. 1 in the latest WIAA RPI rankings — received a No. 4 seed and will face District 5 champion Zillah on Saturday at WF West High School.
After that game, Willapa Valley’s boys team — seeded No. 4 in the 1B boys class — will take on No. 5 Sunnyside Christian in a 1B regional game also at WF West.
Though they are also ranked No. 1 in the WIAA RPI rankings, Raymond received a No. 5 seed and will travel to Wenatchee High School to face No. 4 Okanogan on Saturday.
The Willapa Valley girls team received a No. 16 seed and will open regional play on Friday when it takes on No. 9 Moses Lake/Covenant Christian at Eastmont High School.
WIAA State Basketball Tournament — Regional Matchups
1B Girls — No. 16 Willapa Valley (12-9) vs. No. 9 Moses Lake/Covenant Christian (16-4), 6 p.m. Friday, Feb. 25 at Eastmont High School
1A Girls — No. 5 Zillah (17-3) vs. No. 4 Montesano (19-1), 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 26 at WF West High School
2B Girls — No. 5 Raymond (18-1) vs. No. 4 Okanogan (21-2), 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 26 at Wenatchee High School
1B Boys — No. 5 Sunnyside Christian (17-5) vs. No. 4 Willapa Valley (19-4), 4 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 26 at WF West High School
PREP BOYS SWIMMING
Bates places ninth as Aberdeen closes out state-meet trip
Aberdeen sophomore Tyler Bates sealed one of the closest state meet races in recent memory during Saturday’s state 2A boys swimming & diving championship meet at the Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatic Center on Saturday in Federal Way.
Bates finished with a tie for ninth place — also known as a tie in the consolation finals race — with Mark Morris’ Rudi Soetamin in the 100-yard backstroke to lead the Bobcats’ state contingent.
Overall, Aberdeen finished 26th overall with 14 points. Anacortes won the state 2A team title on Saturday.
“Tyler came into this meet determined to show that he could compete with the state’s best swimmers,” AHS head coach Rob Burns said. “On Saturday, in his best event, he gave everyone a pretty good idea of what he can accomplish. For the entire team, this was a very good day. We had a tough finish, but we accomplished our goals. I am very happy with how everyone performed.”
During the District IV 2A finals last weekend, Soetamin edged out Bates for third. This time, Bates caught Soetamin in the final 50 yards of the consolation final.
Soetamin held the lead in the first 50, while Bates was third and Steilacoom’s John Ruppe separated the duo. However, Bates overtook Ruppe in the third 25-yard leg and executed a solid turn to aim for Soetamin on the final lap.
Bates reeled in Soetamin and both touched at the wall at 58.86 seconds, a personal best for Bates and the tie. Ruppe took third in the race at 58.97 seconds, turning up the drama at the end.
Aberdeen fielded two relay teams in the consolation final races as well. The Bobcats’ 200 medley relay — Bates, Foster Patterson, Zach Foster, Colton Burns — took 16th overall. Aberdeen finished the season in the 400 freestyle relay — Burns, Jamieson Berney, Denny Linker, Bates — and were with the leaders through most of the race before taking 15th overall.
Coach Burns cited all six state swimmers, along with senior alternate Logen Seguin, for their hard work and dedication over the season.
“This was an interesting season from start to finish,” Burns added. “The program looks great for the future, with the seniors leaving the program better than they came in and the underclassmen geared for success.”
— Submitted article
MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Grays Harbor 68, South Puget Sound 65
Playing in front of spectators for the first time in recent memory, the Grays Harbor Chokers thrilled the home crowd with a 68-65 victory over South Puget Sound on Saturday in Aberdeen.
After college administrators released a statement the day before announcing the public would be allowed to enter the Grays Harbor Gymnasium to watch the game — provided proof of vaccine verification and mask-wearing were adhered to — GHC took to the floor and used a late second-half run to take a lead and held on to earn its second consecutive victory.
The Chokers (8-14 overall, 4-5 NWAC West) trailed 50-47 with six minutes left to play before a layup from Justin Loveless and — after dunk by the Clippers’ Mekhi Speller-Hale — a three by Tristan Schoepf tied the game at 52-all.
GHC went on an 11-2 run over the next 4:30 of play, culminating on a David Featherston Jr. layup to put the Chokers up 63-54 with 1:32 remaining.
The Clippers (3-17, 1-8) cut the deficit to 63-60 on back-to-back 3-pointers by Hayden Wakefield with just over a minute to play.
But some made free throws sandwiched around an Avery Seter layup late in the game gave the Chokers its second victory in a row.
Four players scored in double figures for the Chokers, led by Schoepf’s 19 points and a double-double from Loveless, who finished with 14 points and 12 rebounds.
Willapa Valley product Logan Walker finished with 13 points with Featherston scoring 12 for GHC.
The Chokers shot 52.2% from the field on 24-of-46 shooting, held a 13-5 advantage in assists, scored 30 points in the paint and turned the ball over just four times in the ballgame.
GHC plays at Highline College at 7 p.m. on Wednesday.
South Puget Sound 28 37 — 65
Grays Harbor 30 38 — 68
Scoring
SPS (65) — Speller-Hale 20, Tillman 14, Wakefield 11, Barquet 9, Simmons 5, Davis 2, Hicks 2, Alexander 2
GHC (68) — Schoepf 19, Loveless 14, Walker 13, Featherston Jr. 12, Gutierrez 6, Seter 2, Spencer 2
