Was it the water? The higher altitude of Eastern Washington? The dome’s this or that? In trying to figure out how and why two of the Northwest Conference’s best were eliminated on State Tournament Wednesday, there is nothing to blame. They were just beaten by teams that were more on their game on this day.
Regional round losses by Anacortes and Sehome sent both to “Elimination Wednesday.” Both were capable of winning it all, but as deep as the 2A field is in 2023, if you are just slightly off your game at this time, there are no second chances.
The #2 Anacortes Seahawks were handled by the #10 Enumclaw Hornets, and the #5 Sehome Mariners were nipped by the #13 North Kitsap Vikings, ending the season for both.
Enumclaw 63, Anacortes 41
The Enumclaw Hornets, champions of the 2A South Puget Sound League, used a stifling man-to-man defense to hold the Seahawks to 29 points below their season scoring average, in a 63-41 win. The 41 points by the Seahawks was 11 points below their lowest output of the season.
It took a few minutes for both teams to get acclimated. Seahawks senior John-Fritz Von Hagel got his team on the board at the 5:10 mark with a 3-pointer. Senior Gabe Eilertsen came off the bench and scored an inside bucket to cut the Hornets lead to 10-7, and that’s as close as the Seahawks would get.
The Hornets put their best defenders on Seahawks sophomore Davis Fogle, and help arrived quickly anytime Fogle saw daylight. Fogle was able to get off only one field goal attempt in the first eight minutes and finished just 2-6 from the field in the game.
From a 10-7 lead, the Hornets finished the quarter with the next six points, then added a 15-4 run for a 31-11 lead. The Seahawks committed 12 turnovers and the score was 35-13 at halftime.
The Seahawks still trailed by 20 points at the four-minute mark of the third quarter but went on a 12-3 run in only two minutes, cutting their deficit to 13. But over the final two minutes of the quarter, the Hornets scored 13 straight points, to lead 51-25 after three quarters.
At the five minute point of the fourth quarter, the five Seahawk seniors spent the next few minutes on the floor together, before exiting.
Von Hagel was the only Seahawk to log a positive offensive game, scoring 11 points on 4-6 shooting from the field. The Hornets bottled up Fogle and senior Jacob Hayes, who scored just six points each.
Enumclaw has a quarterfinal date with #1 Pullman (24-0) on Thursday. A very exciting Seahawks season ends earlier than anyone would have thought, with a record of 21-4.
North Kitsap 58, Sehome 55
The Olympic League champion, Vikings, and the Mariners tangled in a battle that was in doubt until the final horn, as the Vikings prevailed, 58-55.
The Mariners had to play their way through foul trouble and injuries as senior Grey Garrison picked up two fouls in the first four minutes and sat the remainder of the first half. Seniors Isaac Lawrence and Mat Storms played through injuries, and senior Grant Kepley drew his fourth foul in the middle of the final quarter.
That, and also having to deal with one of the best back court combinations in the state. Two junior guards, 6-5 Cade Orness, and 6-3 Harry Davies, who carry the load for the Vikings.
The Mariners had to go deep on the bench, but managed the chess game throughout. The Mariners led 18-12 early in the second quarter, but the Vikings took the lead with an 8-0 run.
Sehome freshman Nolan Wright hit clutch shots for the Mariners, including two 3-pointers in the first half, both of which gave his team the lead. Storms also worked his 1-on-1 advantage inside for a couple first half hoops. The Vikings led 29-28 at halftime.
Garrison got his offense going in the third quarter as the Mariners exploited his size advantage for a couple inside buckets. Then a third time ended in a 15-footer.
In one sequence with the Mariners down by seven, junior 6-7 post Braddock Duckworth snared an offensive rebound, kicked it out to Storms, who missed a 3-point shot, but Duckworth again grabbed the rebound and scored inside.
Following that, senior wing Isaac Lawrence closed the gap even more by hitting a 3-pointer off a nifty pass from Wright. The Vikings led 44-42 after three quarters.
The Vikings generally worked from ahead in the final quarter, but two free throws by Storms gave the Mariners a 55-53 lead with less than two minutes to play. That lead was erased quickly on a driving bucket by Davies.
The winning basket for the Vikings wasn’t even a shot.
With the game tied at 55-55, Davies took a 3-point shot from the left corner that did everything but find the net. It bounced on the rim several times, ruining the timing for anyone to rebound. The ball came off the rim and it was “knocked” back up, and in, by the Vikings. The score was awarded to 6-2 senior Ethan Gillespie. That gave the Vikings a two-point lead with 33 seconds to play.
After a Sehome timeout, Kepley’s 3-pointer missed, the Vikings rebounded, and the Mariners were forced to foul.
Mason Chmielewski, a 5-11 junior for the Vikings, hit the first end of a one-and-one situation with seven seconds to play, but the Vikings were able to secure the loose ball on the miss, forcing another Sehome foul with four seconds left.
That put Davies on the line with the Vikings leading by three. Davies missed both shots in the double-bonus situation. The Mariners rebounded and found Garrison up the left sideline, where his final shot in desperation did not come close.
The tandem of Davies and Orness did the damage for the Vikings. Davies hit 9-20 shots from the field and scored 25 points. Orness scored 21 for the Vikings.
For the Mariners, Garrison scored 12 points in 20 minutes on the floor. Kepley added 11 and Storms finished with 10.
Just like Anacortes, the Mariners had a great season that ended too early with a record of 18-6. North Kitsap will get a rematch with Lynden, who they played at the ShoWare Center in Kent in January. The Lions won at the buzzer, 52-50. That game will begin at 1230pm on Thursday.
~ Ted House
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