In the long and storied history of Whatcom County high school basketball there have been a lot of amazing teams and incredible seasons that have ended with our local boys and girls raising state championship trophies.
But in the 102 years since the very first Washington state tournament, there has never been an era when our county’s teams dominated as much as they have in recent seasons. Without a doubt, we are in the Golden Age — golden as in lifting the Gold Ball state championship trophy — of Whatcom prep basketball.
When the Lummi Nation boys and Lynden girls won state crowns last March, it marked the seventh time in the past nine years that Whatcom County has claimed at least two state championships. Even more impressive, our teams won three state titles in a year four times during that span, including three of the past four seasons.
But is this really our Golden Age? Haven’t we had other eras with as many state championship teams?
Nope.
And to prove it, Whatcom Hoops has compiled a list of our schools’ state basketball titles to show how incredible the past decade has been. Starting with the first state tourney in 1923, we’ve broken the seasons into 10-year spans, the only exception being the earliest years, which we’ve combined into a 52-year span. (You’ll see why.)
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First, a little context. It’s easier for our 22 teams to win state crowns now than it was in the distant past because we have more teams eligible. There were no girls state tournaments until 1974; now our 11 high schools all have girls teams and five of our schools have won girls state titles at least once.
We actually have had about the same number of boys teams throughout the century. Squalicum and Lummi Nation are recent additions, and Sehome and Lynden Christian not-so-recent additions. But over the years, high schools like Whatcom and Fairhaven combined to become Bellingham, and Sumas and Nooksack consolidated into Nooksack Valley.
The biggest advantage recent teams have over the old-timers is the separation into classifications. Until 1958, there was only one state tournament for schools of all sizes, which meant small rural teams had to face big city squads and there was only one state champion.
Not surprisingly, Whatcom County had no state champions until 1958, the first year of the added classifications. Now there are six classifications of which our 11 schools are eligible for the 3A, 2A, 1A, and 1B state tournaments. Multiply that by two with boys and girls teams and there is a possibility of winning eight state championships each year.
(Note: The very smallest schools had a B state tournament for several years before 1958, but according to WIAA records, only one Whatcom school ever competed at state among the Bs.)
So, just for fun, here’s a look at the different eras and how well our schools did.
The 1974 Nooksack Valley boys led the only Whatcom County 1-2-3 sweep.
1923-1975
The Legendary Era (5 state titles)
In the first 35 years of the Washington boys basketball state tournament, the closest Whatcom County came to a state title was in 1924 and 1939, when underdog Lynden and Blaine, respectively, almost pulled off the David upsets against the Goliath big schools only to fall in the state finals.
It wasn’t until 1958, the first year of the revamped Class A state tournament (the bigger schools started a AA classification), that another underdog team, Mount Baker, brought home our first state championship and one of five during the era.
That legendary team was quickly followed by several more — Lynden’s first champion in 1961, the Lions’ first repeat championship in 1962 and their surprising 1968 state crown, and finally the county’s amazing 1-2-3 finish led by Nooksack Valley in 1974.
The 1980 LC girls were the first Class A back-to-back state champions.
1976-1985
The Lyncs Era (6 state titles)
While Lynden dominated the early decades of the Class A boys state tournament, it didn’t take long for its new city rival to join the championship party in part because of the official recognition of girls basketball in 1974.
Of the six state titles won by county teams during the span, four were by Lynden Christian. The LC boys shocked the state with championships in 1976 and 1982. The LC girls began the dominance that continues today by taking second in 1978 before winning back-to-back titles in 1979 and 1980.
The two other state championships were also historic. The Lynden boys finished undefeated in 1981 to pull off the rare football-basketball title sweep. And the Sehome girls won their first state crown in 1983, the only county girls team besides Lynden Christian to accomplish the feat for another quarter of a century.
The 1991 Lynden boys finished No.1 and unbeaten on the court.
1986-1995
The Dynasty Era (5 state titles)
While the late Eighties proved to be lean years for Whatcom basketball teams as far as state titles, the early Nineties continued two of Washington’s longest high school sports dynasties.
After coming close for 10 seasons, the Lynden Christian girls won it all in 1990 and then repeated in 1991 and 1992. They just missed becoming the first girls squad to win four in a row by placing second in 1993.
The Lynden boys also were in the midst of another strong run highlighted by impressive seasons in 1991 and 1992 when they only lost once on the court and finished with two more state championships.
The 1996 Sehome boys state championship team finished an unprecedented 30-0.
1996-2005
The Historic Era (8 state titles)
Until some political wrangling by other districts forced many of our smaller schools to play up a classification in the early part of the 21st century, the late 1990s and 2000 provided Whatcom County with some of the most memorable teams in county and state history.
The undefeated Sehome boys captured the Class AAA (now 4A) state title in 1996 and are often mentioned as the best boys team ever. The 1996 Lynden Christian girls squad was LC’s first undefeated team and is considered one of the top Class 1A teams ever.
Then there are the repeat state champions — the Blaine boys taking the 2A titles in 1999 and 2000 with the first going unbeaten, and the Lynden Christian girls wrapping up their fifth and sixth state titles of the Nineties in 1998 and 1999.
Toss in the Nooksack Valley boys’ once-beaten 2003 state championship squad and the LC boys’ state title team in 1999 (which along with the Blaine boys and LC girls marked the first time the county had three state champions in the same year) and you have an historic era.
The 2015 Lummi Nation boys earned our first-ever 1B state title.
2006-2015
The New and Improved Era (10 state titles)
It would be hard to imagine a better 10-year span than the previous one, but thanks to a couple of new schools, this era would win even more state championships — 10 to be exact.
There were, of course, the usual suspects. The LC boys started things off with a 2A state title in 2006, followed by the Lynden boys with a state crown in 2007, and the LC girls in 2008. Then in 2012, the Lions and Lyncs swept the boys state titles, and the Lyncs girls won the 2014 state championship.
But then came the newcomers. In the 2A ranks, the Lynden girls and Squalicum boys won their first state titles in 2009, and the Storm repeated in 2010. The other new name to the county’s state championship list was Lummi Nation, whose boys won it all in 1B with an undefeated squad in 2015.
The 2024 Nooksack Valley girls claimed their second straight crown.
2016-2025
The Golden Era (20 state titles)
Then there are the past 10 seasons — nine actually because there were no state playoffs in COVID-affected 2021 — in which our county teams won … are you ready? … twice as many state title (20) as they have in any of the other eras.
Let’s start with the first-timers, including the Mount Baker girls and their shocking 1A state title in 2017, and the Nooksack Valley girls, whose 1A state championships in 2023 and 2024 weren’t shocking but were the first (and second) in school history.
Then there were the Lynden schools.
The Lynden boys’ run of five 2A state titles in six years was remarkable with back-to-back crowns in 2018 and 2019 followed by the historic three-peat in 2022, 2023, and 2024. The Lynden girls were just as dominant with titles in 2017, 2020, and the latest two exciting championships in 2024 and 2025.
Lynden Christian wasn’t far behind with the girls claiming 1A state championships in 2016, 2018, 2020, and 2022, and the Lyncs boys claiming the gold ball in 2018, and their first-ever back-to-back titles in 2022 and 2023.
The Lummi Nation boys finished off the county’s amazing run last March, winning their second 1B state crown.
We truly are in the Golden Era. And who knows when it will end? Keep rooting for your favorite teams and keep up with all the great stories in Whatcom Hoops.
