And then there was one. Make that two.
In what may have been the most competitive state tournament in, well, ever with three undefeated squads, it was the Lynden girls basketball team that was the last one standing after the Lions crushed Ellensburg, 54-37, to win the Class 2A state championship Saturday night, March 8.
Make that two — as in beating the Bulldogs in the championship game for the second year in a row to win back-to-back state titles for the first time in school history.
“It’s been quite the journey,” said Lynden coach Rob Adams, who now has his first undefeated team (28-0) to go along with his four other state championship squads.
“As the season went on, we could see them turn into a fun, energetic, defensive-minded team. We didn’t know if it would end the way it did tonight … but that’s why you lace them up.”
On Saturday’s biggest stage — the Yakima SunDome’s centercourt — the Lions showed why they are one of the best teams in the state regardless of classification by putting on a fun, energetic, defensive-minded performance.
With its aggressive helping man-to-man defense, Lynden limited the Bulldogs to 28 percent shooting and, most importantly, limited them to 37 points, which was not just Ellensburg’s lowest point total of the season but 15 points less than its previous low.
“Thirty-nine is the number,” Adams said of the team’s goal for points allowed each game. “I was proud of our players. They did an amazing job.”
Granted, the Bulldogs were missing one of their starters who had mono, but this was still a team that averaged nearly 70 points in the playoffs and was 27-0 coming into the game and 102-1 over the past three seasons so let’s not make excuses.
“We got the job done again,” said forward Kiki York, one of only two seniors on the team and perhaps the best defender in the Northwest Conference. “We knew they would be fast and shifty and we’d have to play tough. We really worked hard. It’s a good feeling.”
Knowing points would be at a premium, Ellensburg threw everything it could into trying to slow Lynden’s potent offense and especially the Lions’ all-staters, sophomore guard Finley Parcher and junior post Payton Mills. The Bulldogs tried a triangle-and-two defense on the two stars, then just clogged the lane and dared the Lions to shoot from outside.
Parcher and Mills would end up only scoring 14 and 12 points, respectively, but never pressed and only took 16 shots between them, making eight. Which meant the rest of the team had to come through … and they did.
Sophomore point guard Lexi Hermanutz scored 10 points when she wasn’t directing the offense and York had 9 points. But what made Adams grin were the other players who were willing to put up 3s amidst all the pressure of a packed SunDome crowd going wild.
Junior reserves Jules Slayton and Reese Nyhoff each made a 3-pointer, Hermanutz made two, and York, who is known more for stopping 3-pointers than making them, hit one from beyond the arc.
“Today we told them to ‘let ‘er rip,’” said Adams of giving the green light to his outside shooters. “The girls stepped up and took their shots … and made them.”
With Ellensburg unable to force turnovers — the Lions only had eight — and with Lynden controlling the boards, 40-29, the Lions kept a comfortable double-digit lead that was as high as 19 in the fourth quarter.
If the Bulldogs want any solace, they can brag that Class 1A state champion Bellevue Christian was the only other team to stay within 17 points of Lynden this season.
So all that was left was the confetti canon going off, Queen’s rousing chorus of “We Are the Champions,” the net-cutting, and lots of smiling faces in lots of family photos.
Amid all the happiness, the two happiest might have been the team’s two seniors — York and bestie Melanie Anderson. York was a key starter on last year’s squad, but Anderson sat out last season to concentrate on her main sport —fastpitch — where she was the Lions’ starting shortstop.
“Once I saw all the joy they had last year, I knew my basketball career wasn’t over,” said Anderson, who Adams liked to sub for York to guard the other team’s strongest inside player even if they were six inches taller than the 5-foot-5 Anderson. “And then there was Kiki.”
Adams wanted his team to embrace the joy even with all the pressure of repeating and remaining undefeated.
“The journey is complete for our two seniors … for them to go out like they did,” said Adams. “But this brings greater expectations for next season.”
Ah, next season. Barring injuries or early WNBA signings, the Lions will lose only one starter and one key reserve. Even with Ellensburg and Deer Park, the other undefeated team coming into state, returning much of their strong teams, Lynden will undoubtedly be the Class 2A state favorite.
So, what advice does the wise veteran have for her young teammates?
“It’s a good feeling,” York said of winning state a second time. “I’d tell them to enjoy it while it lasts.”
Although the WIAA does not sanction all-tournament teams, in voting by media members, Parcher was named the tournament’s most valuable player and Mills was named to the second team. Joining Parcher on the first team were Jamison Philip of Ellensburg, Julia Dalan of W.F. West, Ashlan Bryant of Deer Park, and Herbie Wright of Prosser.
On the second team with Mills were Bella Standish of Ellensburg, Dilyn Boeck of W.R. West, Deidra Phillips of Prosser, Celine Wright of Archbishop Murphy, and Emma Bryant of Deer Park.
Lynden 54, Ellensburg 37
Ellensburg 10 4 15 8—37
Lynden 15 9 17 13—54
Ellensburg: Ellie Markus 2, Molly Moffat 2, Ella Armstrong, Jamison Philip 15, Grace Boast, Chloee Leishman, Sida Boast, Bella Sandish 15, June Nemrow 2, Sylvia Gruber, Riley Wilcox 1.
Lynden: Degitu Bowler 1, Lexi Hermanutz 10, Reese Nyhoff 3, Rihanna Newcomb, Jules Slayton 3, Rian Stephan, Izzie Stephan 2, Melanie Anderson, Kiki York 9, Finley Parcher 14, Audrey Basart, Payton Mills 12.
CLASS 2A GIRLS STATE TOURNAMENT
At Yakima SunDome
Wednesday, March 5
Prosser 71, Eatonville 24 (loser out)
Columbia River 38, Port Angeles 33 (loser out)
W.F. West 68, North Mason 32 (loser out)
Bainbridge 44, Woodland 40 (loser out)
Thursday, March 6
Prosser 68, Archbishop Murphy 49
Lynden 59, Columbia River 20
Deer Park 56, W.F. West 45
Ellensburg 63, Bainbridge 37
Friday, March 7
Archbishop Murphy 65, Columbia River 35 (loser out)
W.F. West 59, Bainbridge 28 (loser out)
Lynden 62, Prosser 44
Ellensburg 58, Deer Park 50
Saturday, March 8
Archbishop Murphy 62, W.F. West 50 (winner fourth, loser sixth)
Deer Park 52, Prosser 50 (winner third, loser fifth)
Lynden 54, Ellensburg 37 (winner first, loser second)
The Class 2A state champion Lynden girls
