On to state: Local teams shoot for championships
Warden High School senior Jaryn Madsen (5) attempts a basket while Tri-Cities Prep senior Janey Pedersen (15) and senior Claire Potter (11) attempt to block the shot on Feb. 12.
Rebecca Pettingill/Columbia Basin Herald file photo
Four area basketball teams have punched their tickets to the state tournament while three others are still in the running to earn theirs.
The four teams that are guaranteed spots in the tournament include Quincy High School boys, Almira/Coulee-Hartline boys, Moses Lake Christian Academy/Covenant Christian School boys and Warden High School girls.
“We’re excited to be where we’re at, but we definitely feel like there’s more work to be done,” Warden head coach Josh Madsen said.
He said that while they are undefeated, hold the league and district title and have earned their way to state, there is still room for improvement. He said the team is looking forward and focusing on each game ahead and not thinking about what has already been done.
“We’ve got to keep getting better and we’ve got to play our best basketball when it matters the most,” said Madsen.
The three teams who still have a chance to make it to the tournament by winning their next games are Wahluke High School boys, Moses Lake Christian Academy/Covenant Christian School girls and Moses Lake High School girls.
All three teams’ games will be on Saturday. Wahluke will play Blaine at Mount Vernon High School, Moses Lake Christian Academy/Covenant Christian School will play Willapa Valley at Eastmont High School and Moses Lake will play Olympia at Tumwater High School.
The current season records and RPI rankings for the teams in their respective classification:
Almira/Coulee-Hartline boys - 17-3, ranked No. 1 (1B)
Warden High School girls - 22-0, ranked No. 3 (2B)
Quincy High School boys - 20-3, ranked No. 7 (1A)
Moses Lake Christian Academy/Covenant Christian School boys - 21-2, ranked No. 7 (1B)
Moses Lake Christian Academy/Covenant Christian School girls - 16-4, ranked No. 11 (1B)
Wahluke High School boys - 12-9, ranked No. 21 (1A)
Moses Lake High School girls - 12-9, ranked No. 25 (4A)
State basketball tournaments this year will be held at three different locations across the state March 2-5. 1B and 2B will play at the Spokane Arena, 1A and 2A will play at the Yakima Valley SunDome and 3A and 4A will play at the Tacoma Dome.
Rebecca Pettingill can be reached via email at rpettingill@columbiabasinherald.com.