It’s Republic Vs. Reardan Baldwin Gives Tigers Long-Awaited Shot At State Title

All of Republic’s anguish from November vanished Friday.

Jason Baldwin, the quarterback who left Albi Stadium late last autumn with tears in his eyes, exited the Arena floor smiling with his exultant teammates.

Baldwin swished two free throws with 1.9 seconds left to lift the Tigers (26-4) over upstart Darrington 61-60. The Tigers advance to their first state title game, against perennial power Reardan, which powered past Ritzville 58-39.

“All of it hasn’t hit me yet,” said senior guard Baldwin after the first semifinal of the 55th boys State B basketball tournament. “We never thought that any of this would happen.”

Republic was in line to duplicate its football story - a last-second, gut-wrenching loss in the state semifinals. In football, it was DeSales that did the damage.

Instead, fate interceded. Dennis Sherrill, who had guided the Loggers (20-9) to a pair of tourney wins by averaging 23 points, missed two free throws with 13.4 seconds left. Republic’s Mark Rickard snared his game-high 11th rebound and his coach/father Rory called timeout.

Republic inbounded to Baldwin at center court. Loggers defensive specialist Ben Miller took away Baldwin’s option to the left.

“I took a look at the clock and said, ‘Hey, I better hurry,’ ” Baldwin said.

Baldwin went up for a jumper near the top of the key and drew a clear foul from Miller. He hit the first free throw for a tie then drained the second after Darrington called time out. Baldwin shoots 76 percent from the line.

“We wanted to give-and-go to Mark because we thought he might have the best opportunity to get open,” Rory Rickard said.

The Loggers led 58-53 with 1:50 left when Tigers post Kris Kuchenmeister, who sat more than one quarter with foul trouble, hit a baseline turnaround.

The teams exchanged baskets before Mark Rickard, moments after missing a 3-pointer, notched a steal and layup with 27 seconds left.

“The game had see-sawed a lot, and we got pressured a couple of times, but we never give up,” Rickard said.

The game included several streaks: Republic scoring nine straight for an 18-13 lead; Darrington breaking from a 31-all tie with nine straight; Republic whirling to a 47-42 edge with a 14-0 burst in 3:56; and the Loggers immediately responding with 10 straight points.

“It was two really identical teams tonight - personnel, height and quickness,” Rory Rickard said. “The game really confirmed that.”

Darrington’s Ned Miller scored 16 points but fouled out with 2:01 left and the Loggers protecting a five-point advantage.

The other semifinal lacked similar drama, as Reardan (27-1) continued to steamroll through tournament opponents. The Indians have won their three games by an average of nearly 25 points.

Reardan had beaten Ritzville (26-5) by 21 and 18 points this season, and continued the trend when Travis Titchenal unleashed a flurry of 3-pointers that set a tourney record.

Ritzville led 16-13 with 4:20 left in the first half when Titchenal connected on back-to-back 3s. Titchenal finished with five 3-pointers for the game, giving him 16 for the tourney. Waterville’s Keith Mires, in 1994, set the standard with 14.

“If I worry about that kind of stuff, it just throws off my whole game,” Titchenal said.

Titchenal scored 23, hitting 6 of 6 from the line. His fifth 3-pointer, with 2:03 left in the third quarter, resulted in a 39-23 lead.

“I think we just came out tired (early), but then we realized what we were playing for,” Titchenal said.

Reardan has played in seven title games and lost just once - in 1986, its last championship appearance. The Indians won their last title in ‘82. Another championship would tie them with St. John for the most in B history.

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