‘Something bigger’: Colfax triumphs in championship game after losing coach to pancreatic cancer

After a whirlwind of grief, victory came to the Colfax High School basketball team following a tough season of personal loss.

The Colfax boys squad beat the Adna Pirates from Chehalis 69-56 on Saturday at the Arena to win the State 2B championship title and cap an undefeated 26-0 season.

And they did it amid their head coach’s battle against pancreatic cancer.

Colfax Bulldogs coach Reece Jenkin was diagnosed with Stage 4 pancreatic cancer in December. David Cofer, who also coaches the high school football team, joined the basketball team’s staff as an assistant after Jenkin’s diagnosis.

“Toughness is mental more than it is physical, and when I look at this team, there’s one word of describing them: tough,” Cofer said. “From Day 1 we had this mission in mind and with what we went through this year, the adversity we face and the things we battled through, I feel like basketball was such a safe space for these kids and they did such a good job of getting after it and really working through a tough situation.”

Cofer acknowledged Jenkin built the program from the ground up and Cofer was “lucky” to be a part of the home stretch.

Jenkin died Feb. 27 from his cancer battle. At the start of the game, fellow assistant coach Ben Aune, who has largely taken over Jenkin’s position, held up Jenkin’s picture as he was introduced to a roaring crowd of students and Bulldogs fans, many wearing purple shirts for pancreatic cancer awareness.

Jenkin’s son, No. 23 Adrik Jenkin, took his dad’s photo with him as he shook the hands of the opposing team after the game.

“He would want us to play,” Jenkins said. “I know he is pain free and living happy right now … He’s the one who built this program to what it is now. This win is really because of him.”

Jenkin was 45 and leaves behind a wife and three children.

Adrik Jenkin, scored the first points of the game on Saturday. He played with a cool and calm energy, scoring 33 points for the team and playing most of the game.

“It’s a team sport,” Jenkin said after the game. “Obviously you’re going to have better players, but at the end of the day, the team scores and you win as a team, not as a player.”

Jenkin certainly felt the win on Saturday, when after the game hundreds of Bulldogs fans gathered around him. At one point, there was a small line for pictures with Jenkin. Hundreds of people wore purple at the game, which Jenkin couldn’t help but notice. At the start of the game, the Pirates players wore purple T-shirts, too.

“We knew we were playing for something bigger,” Jenkin said.

Next year, Jenkin is playing basketball at Division II Vanguard University in Costa Mesa, California.

Seniors Isabella Huntly and Adlynn Penwell, who play on the Colfax girls basketball team with Jenkin’s sister, Allie, said they’ve been watching all the tournament games. Allie and Adrik have both handled the loss of their dad with grace, Huntly said.

“It’s really inspirational just to see how she’s worked so hard throughout all of this and been really strong and used basketball as an outlet,” Huntly said.

Jenkin’s death has been a topic of discussion among the girls basketball team, Huntly said.

“We definitely got together and said, ‘let’s make sure that we are all here for Allie for all of this,’ ” Huntly said.

Showing up for games like Saturday’s is a part of that promise, Huntly said.

“It’s showing up, being there no matter what,” Huntly said. “The game was really amazing, it was the perfect circumstance. Just getting to see them all so happy and knowing that it wasn’t just a state championship, but it was something bigger.”