In a wild night with eight district playoff games — five of them matching up Whatcom County rivals — the favorites won seven of the eight at home on Wednesday, Feb. 12.
The eighth-seeded Ferndale girls, however, lost to ninth seed Mountlake Terrace in a Class 3A play-in game, 55-46, which, unfortunately, means the Golden Eagles’ season comes to an end.
In the Class 1A semifinals, Lynden Christian swept Mount Baker with the boys winning, 92-43, and the girls winning, 72-15. In the other semifinals, the Meridian boys defeated Nooksack Valley, 69-56, and the Nooksack girls beat Meridian, 51-40.
That means LC and Meridian will face off in the boys district championship game, while the LC girls will take on Nooksack Valley for the district title. Both games will be played Saturday at Lynden High School.
In the Class 2A girls quarterfinals Wednesday, Lynden beat Bellingham, 71-8, and Squalicum edged Anacortes, 38-35, to set up a semifinal matchup between the Lions and Storm on Friday night at Mount Vernon High School. In the other quarterfinal involving a Whatcom team, Sehome fell to Archbishop Murphy, 55-27.
CLASS 3A GIRLS
Cold Golden Eagles Shot Down By Mountlake Terrace, 55-46
There’s no good time for your shooting to go cold, but the Ferndale girls found out the worst time is when trying to make a comeback in the fourth quarter.
After Mountlake Terrace scored the final seven points of the first half to go up, 25-18, the Golden Eagles tried to claw their way back. They cut a 10-point lead down to four midway through the third period but missed two layups and were soon down by 11 again.
But Ferndale rallied one last time, and when senior Isabella Vargas sank two free throws to start the fourth quarter, the Golden Eagles had closed to 40-37 with six minutes to go. It seemed like a comeback was imminent in front of the home fans, but instead, Ferndale’s shooting went ice cold.
For nearly five minutes, the Golden Eagles couldn’t hit anything as the Hawks went on a 9-0 run. Finally, junior Kayla Washington made a free throw with 1:19 left to cut the margin to 11 but even six points by Jilly Fox and a bucket by sophomore Kenzie Dawson in the last minute didn’t matter as Ferndale was forced to foul and Mountlake Terrace hit five free throws down the stretch.
“They battled,” Ferndale coach Terri Yost said of her squad, which finished the season with a 10-10 record. “Mountlake Terrace is a tough team. They shot very well … and we didn’t.”
If there was one stat that was telling, it was 3-point shooting, which has been one of the Golden Eagles’ strengths. It wasn’t Wednesday night, however, as Ferndale only made one, while Mountlake Terrace made five.
Fox led Ferndale with 16 points, but was hampered by foul trouble especially in the second quarter when she sat on the bench and the Hawks outscored the Golden Eagles, 18-6. Washington finished with 8 points, and junior Abby White had 6 points.
“They were a tough, physical team and we weren’t used to that,” said Fox. “We underestimated them. We played OK, but OK is not good enough in the playoffs.”
The end of the season also meant an end to the high school careers of Ferndale’s two seniors — Vargas and Olivia Smetana. “The seniors left a great legacy,” said Yost. “They worked hard, were great teammates, and gave everything when they were on the court.”
Mountlake Terrace, which has no seniors on its roster, improved to 10-11 and goes on to face Western Conference rival and top seed Snohomish in the double-elimination portion of the tournament.
Ferndale 55, Mountlake Terrace 46
Mountlake Terrace 7 18 15 15—55
Ferndale 12 6 17 11—46
Mountlake Terrace: Marino, Coffee 2, Schmidt 8, Davidson 8, Wagner 20, Stokes 4, Kaifa, Dyson 13.
Ferndale: Smetana, Larrabee 4, Gilday, Fox 16, Dawson 4, Washington 8, Vargas 4, Lee 4, White 6.
CLASS 3A GIRLS DISTRICT 1 TOURNAMENT
Wednesday, Feb. 12
First round
#9 Mountlake Terrace 55, #8 Ferndale 46 (loser out)
#7 Monroe 57, #10 Sedro-Woolley 27 (loser out)
#6 Mount Vernon 49, #11 Edmonds-Woodway 43 (loser out)
#5 Shorewood 41, #12 Everett 30 (loser out)
Friday, Feb. 14
Quarterfinals
Mountlake Terrace (10-11) at #1 Snohomish (14-6), 7 p.m.
Monroe (12-10) at #2 Meadowdale (14-5), 7 p.m.
Mount Vernon (15-6) at #3 Stanwood (17-4), 7 p.m.
Shorewood (11-12) at #4 Shorecrest (10-10), 7 p.m.
CLASS 1A BOYS
Meridian Tops Nooksack In Latest Rematch, 69-56
Unlike their past two meetings, there would be no last-second buzzer beater to win the game as the Trojans steadily pulled away from the Pioneers in the semifinal rematch.
Meridian’s two stars — seniors Jaeger Fyfe and Talon Jenkins — led the Trojans with 23 and 12 points, respectively, but surprisingly, the two were held without any field goals in the second half although they did make all six of their free throws.
Instead, Meridian used its depth as junior Matthew Blankenburg had 11 points and three clutch 3-pointers, senior James Hedahl had 11 points, and senior Canyon James had 8 points.
Nooksack Valley had 20 points of its own in the first quarter and it looked like the contest might turn into a shootout, but the Pioneers were held to 24 points in the second half.
Senior Caden Heutink, whose floater as time expired gave Nooksack a 54-53 victory over Meridian on Jan. 13, had another big game with 29 points including an incredible 11 of 12 from the line. Seventeen of his points came in the second half, but the rest of the Pioneers only managed five points after intermission.
Senior Cory Olney had 9 points and a pair of 3-pointers for Nooksack, and senior Brady Ackerman and junior Weston Silves had 5 points each.
With the win, Meridian improved to 15-6 and will play Lynden Christian for the district crown on Saturday at 4:15 p.m. Nooksack Valley fell to 10-10 and will take on Mount Baker in a consolation game Saturday at 12:45 p.m.
Meridian 69, Nooksack Valley 56
Nooksack Valley 20 14 12 10—56
Meridian 23 19 14 13—69
Nooksack Valley: Coppinger, Olney 9, Heutink 29, Wichers, Kamphouse 4, Silves 5, D. Ackerman, VanBerkum 3, B. Ackerman 5.
Meridian: Jenkins 12, Hayes, Fyfe 23, James 8, Haugen, Blankenburg 11, Haugen, Larsen, Alexander 2, Galbraith, Brzozowski 1, Hedahl 10, Harris 2.
Lynden Christian Erupts To Beat Baker, 92-43
The Lyncs put together a 61-point first half and coasted to the semifinal victory that was almost a repeat of LC’s 92-40 regular-season victory between the two teams a month ago.
Senior guard Gannon Dykstra led LC’s onslaught with 24 points, four of the team’s 12 3-pointers, and 7 assists. Sophomore Dawson Hintz had 18 points and a pair of 3s, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists; and sophomore Kaden Veldman made 6 of 7 from the field for 13 points, pulled down 7 rebounds, and had 4 assists and 3 blocks.
Lyncs junior Boyce Robertson made all five of his field goal attempts for 11 points, sophomore Harvest Howell had 7 points, and junior Eli Maberry, and seniors Luke Van Kooten and Carter Ahlers had 6 points each with the three combined for 10 assists.
Senior Luke Smith led Mount Baker with 19 points and three 3s, senior Darius Gilstrap had 7 points, and junior Jordan Bailey had 5 points, but it was not nearly enough against the third-ranked Lyncs.
“Lynden Christian played a complete game tonight against us,” said Mount Baker coach Tony Clark, whose squad dropped to 9-13. “Baker fought hard but we weren’t able to slow down their high-powered offense. We played well in spurts and fought the entire game, but Lynden Christian shot the ball really well throughout.”
The Lyncs improved to 19-2 and will now square off with Meridian for the district title on Saturday at 4:15 p.m. with the winner advancing to the bi-district crossover a week later. The Mounties take on Nooksack Valley in a loser-out contest Saturday at 12:45 p.m.
Lynden Christian 92, Mount Baker 43
Mount Baker 13 9 11 10—43
Lynden Christian 34 27 15 16—92
Mount Baker: L. Smith 19, Gilstrap 7, Bailey 5, G. Smith 2, Lukes, Abitia 2, Armbright 3, Craven, Ross 3, Reardon 2.
Lynden Christian: Hintz 18, Ahlers 6, Maberry 6, Robertson 11, Howell 7, Ga. Dykstra 24, Kamphouse, Van Kooten 6, Veldman 13, Kooiman 1, Vos.
CLASS 1A BOYS DISTRICT 1 TOURNAMENT
Wednesday, Feb. 12
Semifinals
#1 Lynden Christian 92, #4 Mount Baker 43
#2 Meridian 69, #3 Nooksack Valley 56
Saturday, Feb. 15
At Lynden High
Consolation round
Nooksack Valley (10-10) vs. Mount Baker (10-12), 12:45 p.m. (loser out)
Championship game
Lynden Christian (19-2) vs. Meridian (15-6), 4:15 p.m. (winner first, to District 1/2 crossover)
Tuesday, Feb. 18
At Lynden High
Consolation final
Consolation winner vs. semifinal loser, 7:45 p.m. (winner second, to District 1/2 crossover, loser out)
CLASS 1A GIRLS
DeHoog Leads Nooksack Valley Past Meridian, 51-40
Nooksack Valley might not be the same team that won the state championship the past two years, but this group isn’t giving up its crown easily as it knocked off rival Meridian in a semifinal battle.
Junior post Grace DeHoog had a big game against the smaller Trojans, notching a game-high 17 points, including half of the Pioneers’ points in the third quarter when they took a double-digit lead by outscoring Meridian, 18-7. DeHoog also had 18 rebounds and 2 blocked shots.
She also got a lot of help from her teammates. Junior Payton Bartl had 12 points and 5 rebounds, senior Kate Shintaffer had 10 points and 9 rebounds, and junior point guard Chayleigh Davis had 7 assists and 7 steals in addition to negating Meridian’s fullcourt press.
“Grace had a huge rebounding game for us, Chayleigh did a good job breaking pressure, and Kate and Payton had good offensive games,” said Nooksack Valley coach Shane Wichers, whose squad improved to 14-7.
The Trojans won the Jan. 13 meeting between the two teams, 58-42, but couldn’t come up with enough offense on Wednesday and fell to 14-7.
Freshman Melanie Short had 12 points, senior Sofia Brooks had 8 points, and senior Brooklyn Fuller, junior Kinsley Neal, and sophomores Eden Bernardy and Maddy Swanson had 5 points each.
Nooksack Valley will once again meet up with another rival, Lynden Christian, on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. with the winner taking the district title and a spot in the bi-district crossover. Meridian, meanwhile, will face Mount Baker in a loser-out consolation game on Saturday at 11 a.m.
Nooksack Valley 51, Meridian 40
Meridian 8 16 7 9—40
Nooksack Valley 12 12 18 9—51
Meridian: Fuller 5, Neal 5, Bernardy 5, Storgaard, Swanson 5, Brooks 8, Short 12, Cline-Malarz, Benson.
Nooksack Valley: Shintaffer 10, Bartl 12, Davis 3, Duque, Biondolillo 6, Harmon, Burke 3, DeHoog 17.
Lynden Christian Runs Over Mount Baker, 72-15
In an almost identical rerun of their earlier meeting this season, the Lyncs unleashed their depth and demolished Mount Baker in the semifinal clash.
Nine different Lyncs had three or more points led by junior Ella Fritts, who had 11 of her 15 points in the first quarter as Lynden Christian jumped out to an 18-5 lead. Freshman Tyra Dykstra had seven of her 13 points in the second quarter when LC ended the suspense by outscoring Baker, 24-2.
Junior Estela Hernandez added 9 points for the Lyncs, seniors Alisa Scott and Allison Shumate had 8 points each, and junior Kayla Yun and sophomore Ellie Pierce had 5 points a piece. Seven different Lyncs hit 3-pointers as LC almost repeated its 74-16 victory over Mount Baker on Jan. 14.
The Mounties never solved the LC defense and weren’t able to score more than one field goal in each of the last three quarters. Junior Reace Brown had 4 points but no other Mountie managed more than three points.
“LC is clearly a tough team and gets after it at every position,” said Mount Baker coach Tiffany Ramirez.
The victory improved the top-ranked Lyncs to 18-3 and gives them the opportunity to retake their district title when they play Nooksack Valley on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. Mount Baker fell to 7-14 and will take on Meridian in a loser-out consolation game on Saturday at 11 a.m.
Lynden Christian 72, Mount Baker 15
Mount Baker 5 2 5 3—15
Lynden Christian 18 24 19 11—72
Mount Baker: Reeves 3, Brown 4, Soares 2, Wilson 1, Powell 3, Abitia 2, George, Frierott, Johnson.
Lynden Christian: D. Dykstra 3, T. Dykstra 13, Tolsma 3, Hernandez 9, Fritts 15, Scott 8, Shumate 8, Van Loo 3, Yun 5, Pierce 5, Eshuis.
CLASS 1A GIRLS DISTRICT 1 TOURNAMENT
Wednesday, Feb. 12
Semifinals
#1 Lynden Christian 72, #4 Mount Baker 15
#2 Nooksack Valley 51, #3 Meridian 40
Saturday, Feb. 15
At Lynden High
Consolation round
Meridian (14-7) vs. Mount Baker (7-14), 11 a.m. (loser out)
Championship game
Lynden Christian (18-3) vs. Nooksack Valley (14-7), 2:30 p.m. (winner first, to District 1/2 crossover)
Tuesday, Feb. 18
At Lynden High
Consolation final
Consolation winner vs. semifinal loser, 6 p.m. (winner second, to District 1/2 crossover, loser out)
CLASS 2A GIRLS
Lynden Dominates Bellingham From Start, 71-8
The defending state champion Lions wasted little time in showing why they are undefeated and ranked first in the state as they completely overwhelmed the Bayhawks.
Lynden, which improved to 22-0, leaped out to a 25-3 lead after one quarter as coach Rob Adams already emptied his bench by the end of the period and didn’t play the regular starters in the fourth quarter.
Sophomore Finley Parcher had 17 of her game-high 27 points and both her 3-pointers in the big first quarter. Junior Degitu Bowler got a rare start and had 14 points, sophomore Lexi Hermanutz had 11 points, and senior Kiki York had 7 points as eight different Lions scored.
Lynden moves on to the semifinals and will host Squalicum on Friday at 7 p.m. The Lions won the first meeting between the two teams, 64-21, on Dec. 12.
The Bayhawks got buckets from freshman Lucy Holland, senior Malia Hanks, and junior Abigail Morell, but dropped to 6-14. They will be at Anacortes in a loser-out contest on Friday at 7:45 p.m.
Lynden 71, Bellingham 8
Bellingham 3 1 4 0— 8
Lynden 25 15 20 11—71
Bellingham: L. Holland 2, Ask, Manning, Hanks 2, Evans, Ruano, Lockhart 1, Green 1, Morell 2, E. Holland.
Lynden: Bowler 14, Hermanutz 11, Nyhoff 2, Newcomb, Slayton, R. Stephan 4, I. Stephan 4, Anderson 2, York 7, Parcher 27, Basart.
Squalicum Defense Grounds Seahawks, 38-35
The Storm couldn’t get much going offensively in the struggle with the Seahawks, but Squalicum’s defense was up to the task, holding Anacortes to two field goals and only 12 points in the second half to notch the quarterfinal victory.
“I’m really glad we pulled it off,” said Squalicum coach Jenalyn Brown. “It was the first time in 14 years we’ve hosted a first-round playoff game, and we won. The girls played looser and with more grit, and it paid off.”
Sophomore guard Lexi Robbins led the Storm with 15 points and two of the team’s three 3-pointers. Sophomore forward Tiana Thompson added 9 points, 7 rebounds and 2 blocked shots, and the 5-foot-9 forward also had a big and-one late in the game. Senior post Loretta Murphy-Kangas added 10 rebounds.
With the win, Squalicum improved to 12-8 on the season, and will get another crack at undefeated Lynden on Friday at 7:45 p.m. in the second semifinal.
“It was a defensive struggle for sure,” said Brown. “Lexi came up huge, and we had Peyton Horst come in off the bench and step in for her team when we got into foul trouble.”
Anacortes kept in the game by making 16 of 28 free throws, while Squalicum only shot nine, making five. The Seahawks fell to 12-8 and will host Bellingham in a loser-out game on Friday at 7 p.m.
Squalicum 38, Anacortes 35
Anacortes 10 13 5 7—35
Squalicum 8 15 8 7—38
Anacortes: Michael 2, Schwabe 7, E. Davis 1, L. Davis, Nigro 6, Hunt 12, Dunham 7, Boyer, Bauman.
Squalicum: Murphy-Kangas 4, Singh-Sanchez 1, Horst 2, Paz, Perez, Thompson 9, Kiesau 5, Robbins 15, Harper, Kettman 2.
Archbishop Murphy Downs Sehome, 55-27
The Mariners were within 11 at the half against the Wildcats but were outscored, 16-1, in the third period in dropping the quarterfinal contest.
“It was a hard-fought game,” said Sehome coach Kim Stensgar, whose team fell to 8-13. “We held their leading scorers under their average and competed all the way.”
Sophomore Kate Schroeder had 14 points to lead the Mariners, who play a loser-out consolation game at Lakewood on Friday at 7 p.m. Sophomore Elyse Panagos had 5 points, and junior Keira Reeves had 4 points and was praised for her defense by Stensgar.
“Keira deserves a huge shoutout,” said the coach. “She’s been coming off the bench to defend the opponent’s best player and consistently holds them under what they typically score.”
Archbishop Murphy improved to 20-1 with the victory and will host Burlington-Edison on Friday in a semifinal battle between two teams ranked in the top four in the state.
Archbishop Murphy 55, Sehome 27
Sehome 7 10 1 9—27
Archbishop Murphy 13 15 16 11—55
Sehome: Gustafson, Schroeder 14, Turrell 2, Barge 2, Panagos 5, Hogan, Ke. Reeves 4.
Archbishop Murphy: Fryberg 7, Blachly 12, Hookfin 2, Ives, Fletcher 6, Miller, Cohen, Marr 10, Cham 4, Wright 8, Hernandez 6.
CLASS 2A DISTRICT 1 TOURNAMENT
Wednesday, Feb. 12
Quarterfinals
#1 Lynden 71, #8 Bellingham 8
#2 Archbishop Murphy 55, #7 Sehome 27
#3 Burlington-Edison 68, #6 Lakewood 40
#4 Squalicum 38, #5 Anacortes 35
Friday, Feb. 14
Consolation games
Sehome (8-13) at Lakewood (9-13), 7 p.m. (loser out)
Bellingham (6-14) at Anacortes (12-8), 7 p.m. (loser out)
Semifinals
At Mount Vernon
Archbishop Murphy (20-1) vs. Burlington-Edison (19-3), 6 p.m.
Lynden (22-0) vs. Squalicum (12-8), 7:45 p.m.
Monday, Feb. 17
Consolation games
At Mount Vernon
(loser out)
(loser out)
Wednesday, Feb. 19
At Mount Vernon
Championship game
6 p.m. (winner first, to state regionals)
Thursday, Feb. 20
At Mount Vernon
Consolation game
6 p.m. (loser out)
Saturday, Feb. 22
At Mount Vernon
Consolation final
5:15 p.m. (winner second, to state regionals, loser out)
