Losses knock River Ridge, Tumwater out of 2A tournament

YAKIMA - The River Ridge and Tumwater boys basketball teams saw their seasons end Friday morning in the consolation bracket of the Class 2A state tournament at the Yakima SunDome.

Second-ranked Grandview defeated the Hawks, 54-51, and West Valley of Spokane beat the Thunderbirds, 60-52, as River Ridge and Tumwater went two-and-out at the tournament.

Grandview 54, River Ridge 51: It was a one-man show for the Hawks, as junior Rahmel Moton had a game-high 29 points on 11-of-14 shooting, but the rest of the team combined for 22 points.

Brad Wallace was the team’s second-leading scorer with five points.

The Greyhounds advance to play for a state trophy for the 14th consecutive season. They’ll face West Valley for fourth/sixth places today at 8 a.m.

Like they did Thursday, the Hawks rallied back from a double-digit deficit. River Ridge trailed by as many as 17 points, but with the help of Moton built a five-point advantage before a back-and-forth final quarter.

Grandview’s Christian Schrank hit the go-ahead basket with 2 minutes, 3 seconds left in the game to give the Greyhounds a 52-50 lead. Schrank also was fouled on a rebound and sank two free throws with eight seconds left.

West Valley (Spokane) 60, Tumwater 52: The Eagles shot 45 percent and took 10 fewer attempts than Tumwater, but one of the difference-makers Friday came from the free-throw line.

West Valley was 21 of 26 from the line, while the Thunderbirds were 11-for-18.

The win sends West Valley to the game for fourth/sixth-places against Grandview.

Tumwater led 38-37 going into the final quarter, but Jake Love and Darian Vandermark, who scored 16 points apiece, helped the Eagles pull away.

Kyle Warner was the only T-Bird to score in double figures, with 15 points.