District 6 tournament: Mead girls fall in ‘instant classic’ to Chiawana in title game; Mead boys outlast Riverhawks to stay alive

It might not have been a state playoff game, but it sure felt like it.

The Mead girls team has played on Saturday at state the past three seasons, entered the district playoffs as the best team in the Greater Spokane League 4A classification, and ranked No. 11 in the state RPI.

Chiawana, the Mid-Columbia Conference champion, has been snakebit a little in these district playoffs the past couple of seasons, but came into the game with just one loss and the No. 4 spot in the RPI.

What resulted on Thursday was as high level a display of girls basketball one could find outside of Tacoma, with the teams trading punches and counters all evening in contrasting styles of power and chaos.

Chiawana’s 6-foot-2 post Malia Ruud provided the power, and some finesse, hitting three 3-pointers and scoring 28 points as the visiting, second-seeded Riverhawks (22-1) beat the top-seeded Panthers (15-7) 73-63 in the District 6 4A title game on Thursday.

Gianna Meledez came off the bench for four 3-pointers and 14 points, and Baylee Maldonado added 13 for Chiawana.

Addison Wells Morrison led Mead with 19 points. Ellie Thornton added 14 points and Caroline Spink 12. The Panthers will host a winner-to-state, loser-out game on Saturday against fourth-seeded Kamiakin.

“It was just a good basketball game,” Mead coach Quantae Anderson said. “It was a war of attrition, right? I felt like we had some mistakes, some breakdowns defensively, that ended up hurting us.”

Mead pressed most of the night after makes and used a slashing attack in an attempt to keep Ruud and 6-3 guard Kaia Foster moving.

“I thought we made it chaotic enough,” Anderson said. “Malia is just good and big and strong, and then she steps out for a 3.”

After a frenetic pace by both teams to start the game, Chiawana made the first surge. Maldonado and Ruud hit back-to-back 3-pointers, then Ruud added a midrange jumper to make it 17-10. Mead scored twice in the paint with Ruud out for a breather and Chiawana led 19-14 after one quarter.

A 11-4 spurt to start the second quarter, fueled by 3-pointers from Reese Frederick and Morrison, gave Mead its first lead of the game at 25-24. Morrison made a 3-pointer from the corner with 40 seconds left and Mead led 37-36 at halftime.

Mead hit two early 3-pointers in the third quarter, but Chiawana responded with a 10-2 run to take a 49-42 lead. Ruud scored eight in the thire quarter and the Riverhawks led 52-47.

Ruud hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key, then powered home an offensive rebound to put Chiawana up by nine with five minutes left.

Mead went right at the Riverhawks, going 8 of 10 at the line, and got the deficit to five with 1:45 left. The Panthers got a stop, then Thornton drove for a contested layup and a three-point game.

But Medelez hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key with 55 seconds left, and Mead turned it over on an offensive foul.

“We had our game plan, and we worked it for the most part,” Anderson said. “And then we left some of their shooters open that we shouldn’t have left open. But I’m super proud – those girls gave everything they had tonight.”

Boys

Mead 70, Chiawana 64: Bryce Lynd scored 18 points, Karson Maze had 17 and Nash Dunham added 15 and the third-seeded Panthers (19-5) eliminated the fourth-seeded Riverhawks (20-5).

Mead travels to Richland in a winner-to-state, loser-out game on Saturday.

Mead came in No. 11 in the RPI, Chiawana was 13.

“In District 6, you’ve got four of the top 10 teams in the state, and only two of us get to go (to state),” Mead coach Luke Jordan said. “The 4A is just really strong over here. It’s great stuff.”

Mead led by six entering the fourth quarter, but Chiawana used a 9-0 run to take a 57-54 lead. Dunham hit a 3-pointer then turned to the Mead student section to lead the cheer, to put the Panthers up 62-59 with 1:53 left. He hit a 3-pointer from the opposite side of the court next time down for a six-point lead.