Colton again

YAKIMA – After finishing third, second and first twice since the 1B classification was created, the Colton Wildcats have taken on the look of a superpower.

So for many in attendance at Saturday’s State 1B girls basketball championship at the SunDome, it wasn’t so much that the Wildcats won their second straight championship. It was how they won it.

The Wildcats (25-1) toppled Almira/Coulee-Hartline 64-34, shattering their 2009 record for points in a tournament with 259, easily outdistancing their old total of 232. They also established a tournament record for fewest points allowed with 89. Colton allowed an opponent to score in double figures in two quarters during the four games and the margin of victory was a cumulative 169 points, also a record.

“We obviously played pretty well today,” Colton coach Clark Vining said. “It helped a lot that out legs were fresh, because our reserves played so much in the other games.

“I really think the experience we’ve gotten playing here the last couple years helped us out.”

Saturday was a big day in the Vining household. Clark’s son Luke celebrated his ninth birthday with the team at midcourt after the game, and he was hoisted along with the state championship trophy after the nets were cut down.

Heading into the game ACH coach Ben Addink called Colton “the benchmark” in 1B.

It was apparent early that the Warriors (23-4) were going to be the fourth victim this week of Colton’s attack.

The Wildcats reeled off nine straight points to start the game and shut the Warriors out for the game’s first 6:11.

By the time ACH staggered into the locker room at halftime it had surrendered seven 3-pointers – Colton hit 7 of 15 from beyond the arc – turned the ball over nine times and trailed 38-15.

Tournament MVP Haley Moser led Colton’s aerial attack with 12 first-half points, nine of them on 3-pointers. Moser finished with 15. Her older sister, Kelsey, finished with 11 points in her last game as a Wildcat.

Mollie Kramer also had 12 in the first half, hitting two 3-pointers. She led all scorers with 21 points.

Sarah Gloyn and Nikki Osborn had 10 points each for ACH.

Columbia 67, Pateros 42: The Lions held Pateros to 15 percent shooting from the field in the first half, racing to a 31-11 lead and cruising to the third-place trophy. The trophy is the fifth in five tries and surpassed only by the school’s 1986 state championship.

Krista Colvin led Columbia (23-5) with 21 points and eight steals. Julie Ann Larrow added 12 points.

Columbia’s relentless defense forced the Nannies into 35 turnovers, 17 in the first half. That set the stage for the offense.

“When our defense and offense are really clicking, we’re hard to beat,” Columbia coach Roy Graffis said. “The last time it happened, we were ahead 28-2 after the first quarter.”

Graffis closed out his 40th year as a coach with the win.

He’s won seventh- and third-place trophies since coming out of retirement in 2008 to lead the program he coached to a state title in 1986.

St. John-Endicott 49, Neah Bay 30: The Eagles completed their rebound from Wednesday’s loss in the first round, zipping to a 34-20 halftime lead en route to the fifth-place trophy.

Kelsey Simon scored 16 points and Kelly Van Lith chipped in 12 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for the Eagles (23-4), who took home a trophy for the fourth straight year. The trophy is the Eagles’ 12th in 16 trips to state.