Photos
But all this week, there have been extra smiles and excitement all around for the Bears as they gear up for their first state tournament appearance since 2003 and just their fourth in the program’s history.
A late-season surge, including two tightly contested victories in the West Central/Southwest bi-district tournament, has the Bears (10-14) in the 4A state tournament. For their regional-round game, they’ll head east to face Gonzaga Prep (17-5) of Spokane, the top-seeded team from District 5/6/8, at 6 p.m. Saturday at Spokane Falls Community College. A win puts Olympia in the Tacoma Dome as one of the final eight teams.
“I’m happy with where we’re at,” Olympia coach Rod Tripp said. “What an accomplishment for the girls to say they’ve gone to state. And just to be able to build from here.”
Olympia was the only 4A Narrows League team to make it out of the West Central/Southwest bi-district tournament and into the field of 16 for state. Without a doubt, the Bears are playing their best basketball of the season – winning five of their past seven games. A 47-44 come-from-behind victory Saturday against league-rival Central Kitsap punched the Bears’ ticket to state, joining the 1982, ’93 and ’03 Olympia teams that reached the same destination.
“We believed in ourselves when a lot of people didn’t,” senior guard Alex Bassett said. “We believed in ourselves and had a lot of fun. We weren’t expected to win. We had nothing to lose.”
Olympia had three main goals when the season began, and the Bears achieved one of them: the third and final one.
1. Finish in the top three in the 4A Narrows League (they placed fourth).
2. Win all of their non-league games (they won two out of six).
3. Make the 4A state tournament.
Reaching the state tournament could easily have been seen as a long shot because of Olympia’s youth and inexperience, but Tripp never referred it as a “rebuilding year” despite using four different freshmen in the starting lineup to go with his three seniors – Bassett, Molly Spiller and Megan Schmidt. Two other freshmen who would have contributed – Laura Snodgrass and Faith Cebula – have dealt with season-ending knee injuries.
And then, there was the mini-losing skid. On Feb. 2, Olympia lost its fourth straight game – 53-47 to Gig Harbor – and saw its record fall to 5-12.
But since then, the team is 5-2 and won all of its must-win games, including two loser-out games (against Spanaway Lake and Central Kitsap) during the bi-district tournament.
The difference? Understanding to play as a unit rather than as individuals. There is no 20-points, 10-rebounds-a-night superstar on this team; it’s a five-girls-named-Jill mentality on the court, with balanced scoring that has been the cornerstone of the Bears’ success.
“Within the last two weeks, we’ve really matured and come together,” Spiller said.
Spiller has had the luxury of playing alongside her younger sister, Jona, a freshman starting guard, and has seen firsthand the growth and development of the freshmen this season – to the point of them playing like veterans.
“They all did a fantastic job and have worked really hard,” Molly Spiller said. “They really aren’t freshmen anymore.”
Said Jona Spiller: “The encouragement and positive reinforcement from the seniors and juniors has really helped us have the confidence to be able to play at this level.”
Players know they are the underdog Saturday. Gonzaga Prep features five players 5-feet-10 or taller, including 6-3 senior post Jasmine Brown. And the Bullpups’ point guard is Montana State-bound Lindsay Stockton, the daughter of NBA Hall of Famer John Stockton, who has been an assistant coach for G-Prep the past three years.
Regardless of the outcome, though, a solid foundation for the future has been laid.
And Tripp was quick to remind his players that this is the third time their season record is at 0-0: at the start the season, then at district, and now at state.
“Now, anything can happen,” he said.
Meg Wochnick: 360-754-5473 mwochnick@theolympian.com www.theolympian.com/southsoundsports
THIS WEEKEND’S PREP BASKETBALL GAMES
Matchups for South Sound teams in the regional round of the state tournament:
BOYS
All games Friday
4A: Olympia (20-5) vs. Bothell (16-9), 6 p.m. at Auburn High School
2A: River Ridge (15-8) vs. Anacortes (17-7), 8 p.m. at Tumwater High School
2A: North Thurston (19-6) vs. White River (22-5), 6 p.m. at Mount Tahoma High School, Tacoma
1B: Mary M. Knight (15-5) vs. Mount Rainier Lutheran (21-2), 8 p.m. at Timberline High School, Lacey
GIRLS
All games Saturday
4A: Olympia (10-14) vs. Gonzaga Prep (17-5), 6 p.m. at Spokane Falls CC, Spokane
3A: Timberline (15-8) vs. Shorecrest (19-5), 6 p.m. at Jackson High School, Mill Creek
2A: River Ridge (17-7) vs. Port Angeles (17-7), 4 p.m. at Mount Tahoma High School
2A: W.F. West (20-3) vs. Renton (18-6), 4 p.m. at Tumwater High School
1A: Tenino (18-5) vs. Cascade Christian (18-5), 6 p.m. at W.F. West High School, Chehalis
1A: Rainier (14-10) vs. Lynden Christian (16-8), 6 p.m. at Glacier Peak High School
1B: Mary M. Knight (14-6) vs. Northwest Yeshiva (20-3), 8:30 p.m. at Timberline High School
