No. 3 North Kitsap topples fifth-seeded Anacortes, Fogle led by backcourt trio in WIAA 2A boys tourney
YAKIMA, Wash. – North Kitap’s backcourt triumvirate was too much for Anacortes’ Goliath on Thursday night – once all three guards were firing for the third-seeded Vikings.
NK senior Cade Orness shrugged off an uncharacteristic first half to score a team-high 24 points, leading three players in double figures and the Vikings overcame a 33-point performance by Seahawks junior Davis Fogle for a 66-54 victory in the Class 2A state quarterfinals in the Yakima Valley SunDome.
As much as Orness’ first half was forgettable, the performance after the intermission was quite memorable for he and the Vikings.
“I just grounded myself to the place that I was in I just came into the second half with a different mindset and just played my game,” he said.
His game was 17 points on 7-of-10 shooting after just seven points and a hide-your-eyes 3-for-7 from the free throw line.
“He’s been here, he should be knocking those down every time but their kids and they get the jitters, they get really hyped,” North Kitsap coach and Cade’s dad Scott Orness said.” We always talk about playing at a 7 on offense – not a 10 – and I think we more at the 9 or 10 level.”
While the Vikings’ familiar No. 10 was out of sync, his backcourt mates – Harry Davies and Jordan – led the Olympic League champions to a 30-25 lead with 10 and eight points, respectively.
Davis finished with 18 points and nine rebounds and Williams chipped in 15.
On the defensive end, the Vikings did what they wanted to – make the 6-foot-6 Fogle, who’s being wooed by teams throughout the country, work for his points.
“If we can hold him to his average and shut those other guys down we have enough firepower to score more points,” Scott Orness said.
Check and check.
“The second half was some of the best basketball we have played this season and we really stuck to the game plan,” the coach added.
Fogle was 10-for-27 from the field and rest of the Seahawks connected on 7 of 27.
The Vikings (22-4) will meet second-seeded Grandview in the 9 o’clock nightcap Friday, while Anacortes (21-7) meets No. 8 Prosser at 2 p.m. Friday to advance to Saturday’s trophy round.
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Photo by Lane Mathews
Shooters’ touch
The fifth-seeded Wapato girls basketball team didn’t suffer from the first-game shooting struggles many teams go through in their opening game in the cavernous Yakima Valley SunDome.
Instead, the Wolves shot at a robust 50-percent clip to take down No. 6 Lakeside of Nine Mile Falls 69-64 in the first 1A girls quarterfinal. And that’s after they cooled slightly from the 51.9-percent clip before halftime.
“The girls have really been focused the last week of practice preparing understanding it’s a different atmosphere in here,” Wolves coach Joe Blodgett said. “They came out confident and relaxed.”
Trin Wheeler led Thursday’s assault, connecting on 11 of 15 shots en route to a game-high 26 points. SCAC West MVP Deets Parrish added 14 points while Jordan Espinoza and Kobe Johnson added a dozen a piece/
Wapato will need to keep up the hot shooting if they’re to do what only one other team, and none from Washington, has done – beat reigning champion and top-seeded Nooksack Valley and Washington recruit Devin Coppinger.
The Wolves had hoped the showdown with the Pioneers would happen in Saturday night’s title games.
Instead, a loss in the district final dropped Wapato to the fifth seed. But they’ve bounced back, hitting the road to beat No. King’s in the regional round before Thursday’s victory.
“They have responded well,” Blodgett said. “You can only control what you can control.”
Second-seeded Deer Park bettered the Wolves’ shooting in Thursday’s nightcap. The Stags shot 52.2 percent for the game and 57.1 percent in the first half of their 68-38 victory against Cashmere.
