Boys Scouting Report
THE FAVORITES
Valley Christian Panthers
Record: 24-0
Coach: Steve Altmeyer, fourth year, 87-16
First-round opponent: Mossyrock
Route to state: Defeated Northwest Christian 51-44 at District 7 tournament.
Top players: Brent Decker, 6-3, jr., F, 16.3 ppg; Eric Smith, 6-1, sr., F, 15.2 ppg; Jared Evans, 6-2, sr., F, 14.1 ppg; Matthew Barriero, 5-9, jr., G, 9.1 ppg; Joel Knigge, 5-10, soph., G, 6.8 ppg.
Fast fact: Decker plus Smith plus Evans equals 2,888 career points for the Panthers.
Outlook: We said this in 1998 (correctly) and ‘99 (incorrectly): VC should play for the title. The Panthers are 6-2 at state during those appearances.
Pateros Billygoats
Record: 21-2
Coach: Mike Hull, 15th year, 252-112
First-round opponent: Bush
Route to state: Defeated Waterville 63-58 at District 6 tournament.
Top players: Clint Hull, 6-3, sr., F, 24.9 ppg; Mark Stennes, 6-2, sr., F, 9.5 ppg; Kevin Stennes, 6-1, sr., F, 7.5 ppg; Jorge Lopez, 5-4, sr., G, 5.8 ppg; Bobby Sapp, 5-11, jr., G, 6 ppg.
Fast fact: Hull, Lopez and both Stenneses were team managers when Pateros won the state title in 1996.
Outlook: The road to Saturday night is rugged, but the Billygoats are the kind of veteran team that could make it.
Garfield-Palouse Vikings
Record: 21-2
Coach: Tim Coles, 16th year, 309-70
First-round opponent: Neah Bay
Route to state: Defeated St. John-Endicott 41-36 at District 9 tournament.
Top players: Jeremy Kimble, 6-2, sr., G, 20.2 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 3.7 apg; 74-92 FTs; Jason Fox, 6-4, jr., C, 13.7 ppg, 9.7 rpg, 64-80 FTs; Aaron Elder, 5-11, jr., G, 8.2 ppg, 3.7 apg, 22-52 3-pointers; Mitch Kriebel, 5-11, jr., G, 6.5 ppg; Adam Elder, 5-10, jr., F, 5.9 ppg, 4.4 rpg.
Fast fact: The Vikings have shot 50 percent from the floor and 74 percent from the line.
Outlook: Gar-Pal should place in the top three, with a projected Friday semifinal against Valley Christian determining whether it will play for its first title since 1990.
THE CONTENDERS
Curlew Cougars
Record: 25-2
Coach: Steve Brown, eighth year
First-round opponent: Sunnyside Christian
Route to state: Defeated Northwest Christian 64-57 at District 7 tournament.
Top players: Jeremy Groth, 6-1, sr., G, 32.2 ppg, 12.5 rpg, 7.2 apg, 4.2 spg; Craig Groth, 5-10, soph., G, 14.8 ppg, 7 rpg, 6.8 apg, 4.5 spg; J.B. Olsen, 6-3, sr., C, 13.4 ppg, 7.8 rpg; Matt Anderson, 5-9, sr., G, 6.1 ppg; Mel Garrison, 6-1, soph., C, 7 ppg, 4.3 rpg.
Fast fact: Sprague-Harrington (57-55) is the only Class B team to defeat Curlew. The other loss was to 3A Colville.
Outlook: Expect Curlew to exceed its sixth-place trophy from 1998. Jeremy Groth is the only returning starter from that team.
Seattle Lutheran Saints
Record: 21-3
Coach: Rob Dowding/Jeff Sagmoen
First-round opponent: St. John-Endicott
Route to state: Defeated Neah Bay 86-78 at District 1-2-3 tournament.
Top players: Seth Caine, 5-11, jr., G, 24.1 ppg; Tyrone Shephard, 6-2, soph., G, 12.6 ppg; Kelly Wyman, 6-0, sr., G, 10.8; Tommy Matthews, 6-5, sr., F, 9 ppg; Daren Rice, 6-2, sr., F, 5.8 ppg.
Fast fact: The high-scoring Caine, aka Skala-Hanson, is the son of former local radioman Ichabod Caine.
Outlook: The Saints should earn top honors among Tri-District teams, possibly as high as fifth place.
St. John-Endicott Eagles
Record: 20-6
Coach: Darrell Miller, fifth year
First-round opponent: Seattle Lutheran
Route to state: Defeated Waitsburg 50-49 at District 9 tournament.
Top players: Josh Hames, 6-3, sr., F, 15.1 ppg; Karl Scheuerman, 6-3, sr., G, 14.1 ppg; B.J. Bezdicek, 6-0, sr., G, 7.6 ppg; Jason Siler, 6-1, sr., F, 6.3 ppg; Wydell Duncan, 6-4, sr., C, 8.2 ppg.
Fast fact: Scheuerman and Hames have combined to score 2,149 career points, including 198 points at state.
Outlook: There’s a good chance SJE will play for at least its third consecutive third-place trophy.
Waterville Shockers
Record: 18-6
Coach: Jim Evans
First-round opponent: Quilcene
Route to state: Defeated Day Star Christian 56-30 at District 6 tournament.
Top players: Kellen Biggar, 6-3, sr., C, 17.6 ppg; Tyler Greenwood, 6-0, jr., G, 14.8 ppg; Josh Barnes, 6-1, sr., G, 10.1 ppg; Kelsey Ryan, 6-2, sr., C, 8.2 ppg; Heath Jordan, 6-0, sr., C, 2.8 ppg.
Fast fact: The defending champions graduated three seniors, but are the only Class B team with a win over Pateros.
Outlook: The golden ball may not remain in Waterville, but some kind of trophy will take its place in the “Shockerdome.”
MIGHT SURPRISE
Wahkiakum Mules
Record: 21-2
Coach: Bob Garrett, fifth year
First-round opponent: Ritzville
Route to state: Defeated Pe Ell 64-48 at District 4 tournament.
Top players: Jerod Moore, 5-11, sr., G, 22.1 ppg, 4 spg, 5 apg; Randy Riley, 6-2, sr., F, 7.3 ppg, 7 rpg; Jake Grasseth, 6-0, sr., G, 5.9 ppg, 3.5 apg; Brian Cochran, 6-4, jr., F, 13.1 ppg, 7 rpg; Toby Bell, 6-3, jr., F, 11.6 ppg, 7 rpg.
Fast fact: Assistant coach Bill Olsen holds the school’s career scoring record (1,685 points), played in the state title game of 1979 and hasn’t missed a state game since 1974.
Outlook: Although the Mules have been MIA from state since 1983, their 23-9 record in tourney games is the second-best winning percentage (behind St. John) among teams with at least 20 games. We see 25-11 by tourney’s end.
Wilbur-Creston Wildcats
Record: 18-5
Coach: Tom Johnson, second year, 25-18
First-round opponent: Naselle
Route to state: Defeated Sprague-Harrington 64-56 at District 7 tournament.
Top players: A.J. Nelson, 6-3, jr., C, 16.4 ppg; Gregg Arden, 6-1, jr., G, 10.5 ppg, 4.7 apg, 3.6 spg; Brian Johnson, 5-10, jr., G, 8.5 ppg, 3.7 spg, 3.6 apg; Darin Erickson, 6-2, jr., F, 7.7 ppg; Jeff Krause, 6-0, sr., G, 5 ppg.
Fast fact: The young Wildcats went from a 7-13 season in 1999 to losing the district championship by one point.
Outlook: Watch out if their confidence is still high from nearly defeating Valley Christian last Saturday.
Sunnyside Christian Knights
Record: 20-2
Coach: Dean Wagenaar, 108-34
First-round opponent: Curlew
Route to state: Defeated Lyle 44-30 at District 5 tournament.
Top players: Lance Den Boer, 6-4, fr., F, 21.7 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 2 bpg, 88-98 FTs; Michael Van Wingerden, 5-11, sr., G, 12.6 ppg, 3.5 apg, 66-176 3-pointers; Bodie Jones, 6-2, sr., F, 9.7 ppg, 2.5 spg; Josh De Boer, 5-10, sr., G, 8.5 ppg, 3 apg; David Dekker, 6-3, sr., C, 8.7 ppg, 3.7 rpg.
Fast fact: Senior Allan Prins starts in place of Den Boer, but the sweet-shooting freshman (59 percent FGs) doesn’t stay on the bench long.
Outlook: Wednesday’s opener could be a first-day highlight, but a slight nod goes to Curlew.
Ritzville Broncos
Record: 18-8
Coach: Dwight Pflugrath
First-round opponent: Wahkiakum
Route to state: Defeated Sprague-Harrington 54-49 at District 7 tournament.
Top players: Josh Whitman, 6-1, jr., F, 17.9 ppg; Brett Arlt, 5-10, jr., G, 10.7 ppg; Dan Kuster, 6-4, jr., C, 8.6 ppg; Jason Heider, 5-8, sr., G, 6.5 ppg; Brett Pflugrath, 6-3, soph., F, 6.3 ppg.
Fast fact: Whitman and Valley Christian’s Brett Decker are the two area juniors who figure to surpass 900 career points at the tournament.
Outlook: Tough bracket: Reaching the trophy round will probably mean getting past tourney favorites VC or Garfield-Palouse, or defending state champion Waterville.
THE UNDERDOGS
Naselle Comets
Record: 16-7
Coach: Ryan Bjornsgard, third year, 44-28
First-round opponent: Wilbur-Creston
Route to state: Defeated North Beach 72-68 in overtime at District 4 tournament.
Top players: Troy Salme, 5-11, jr., G, 16.4 ppg; Paul Wirkkala, 6-0, jr., G, 13 ppg; Dustin Doty, 5-10, soph., G, 9.5 ppg; Matt Whipple, 5-10, sr., G, 9.3 ppg; Alan Wirkkala, 5-11, sr., F, 7 ppg.
Fast fact: The Comets are making a record 33rd appearance at the tournament, one more than Reardan.
Outlook: The state matchups were too much for Naselle last year and look similarly difficult.
Quilcene Rangers
Record: 19-5
Coach: Jim Weller
First-round opponent: Waterville
Route to state: Defeated Shoreline Christian 59-37 at District 1-2-3 tournament.
Top players: Erik Vandenberg, 6-7, jr., F, 12 ppg, 10 rpg; Nick French, 5-11, jr., G, 12 ppg, 6 apg; Adam Newman, 6-2, sr., G, 12 ppg; Chris Bloomfield, 6-5, sr., F, 12 ppg; Aaron Boling, 6-3, sr., G, 6 ppg.
Fast fact: The Rangers’ 24-year absence from state is the longest among this year’s qualifiers.
Outlook: Its height will pose problems, but Quilcene likely won’t make it to trophy round.
Neah Bay Red Devils
Record: 15-5
Coach: Ron Johnson
First-round opponent: Garfield-Palouse
Route to state: Defeated Snohomish County Christian 56-49 at District 1-2-3 tournament.
Top players: Jerry Cross, 6-2, sr., C; Pete Hice, 6-2, sr., F, 12.2 ppg; Aaron Taber, 6-4, soph., C, 10.9 ppg; D.J. Taber, 6-0, jr., G, 8 ppg; Michael Lawrence, 5-10, jr., G, 7.7 ppg.
Fast fact: The Red Devils’ best placing in seven previous appearances was sixth.
Outlook: The 9 a.m. tournament-opening game has produced upsets, but this won’t be one of them.
Bush Blazers
Record: 14-13
Coach: Steve Hawes, fourth year
First-round opponent: Pateros
Route to state: Defeated Shoreline Christian 49-37 at District 1-2-3 tournament.
Top players: Atuanya Priester, 5-11, sr., G, 4 ppg; Henry Greeley, 6-3, soph., F, 15 ppg, 7 rpg; Dwayne McClain, 5-6, jr., G, 3 ppg; Aaron Wald, 6-0, jr. F, 14 ppg; Ellis Hawes, 6-4, sr., C, 12 ppg, 11 rpg.
Fast fact: Coach Hawes, a University of Washington graduate, played for Seattle, Portland, Atlanta and Houston during a 10-year NBA career.
Outlook: The Blazers saved their season after a 1-7 start, but they face long odds in keeping their record at better than .500.
Mossyrock Vikings
Record: 17-6
Coach: Andy Davis
First-round opponent: Valley Christian
Route to state: Defeated Willapa Valley 59-44 at District 4 tournament.
Top players: Ben Callies, 6-3, sr., F, 15 ppg; Darin Overbay, 6-0, jr., G, 9 ppg; Jesse Nelson, 6-1, sr., F, 6 ppg; Roy Talbott, 6-3, sr., F, 6 ppg.
Fast fact: Mossyrock wrested a state berth from Willapa Valley, the team that opening-day rival Steve Altmeyer coached before he came to Valley Christian.
Outlook: The Vikings have never placed at state and don’t figure to do so in their fourth appearance.