Lady Mules place 2nd in state tourney

The Wahkiakum Lady Mules basketball team brought home a second place trophy from the State 2B Basketball Tournament that was held last weekend in Spokane.

The Mules crossed off Mabton and LaConner on Thursday and Friday, coming from behind each night to win in a progressively thrilling fashion.

They were unable to continue their winning pattern on day three and lost to an unbeaten, number one ranked team from Okanogan, a team that until this year played 1A.

It has been 34 years since a Wahkiakum Mules girls basketball team has made it all the way to the State 2B championship game.

"This group of girls overcame a lot of obstacles this year and in doing so became a great team," Coach Rob Garrett said. "It has been a blast of a season and I'm super proud of them. They put Wahkiakum girls basketball back on the map. It takes a season like this one to start building a legitimate program. You get the community excited as well as all the girls coming up.

"Not only did this group make lifelong memories for themselves and the coaches but they also built dreams for a ton of younger kids in this community! Thanks for the great season and all you have done ladies!"

On their opening night against Mabton, the Mules were finally able to pull ahead in the fourth quarter after spending most of the game trailing or trading the lead, to beat the Vikings 68-58.

It was a team performance with several players scoring in the double digits. Peyton Souvenir had 16 points and pulled down six rebounds. She also had four assists. Sam Boyce added 15 points, five rebounds, six assists and four steals. Tori Wegdahl had a double double with 14 points and 10 rebounds. She also had three assists and one steal. Kaylee Bryant also had a double double, scoring 12 points and grabbing 16 boards. She had four steals and four blocks. Baylee Olsen had eight points, eight rebounds, three assists, two steals and three blocks. Grace Peacock added three points and one rebound. Maddie Mace had four rebounds and one assist; Savannah Burdick had one rebound and one steal; Jessica Thomas had one assist.

The Mules shot 40 percent from the floor and 56 percent from the free throw line. Mabton was called for 27 fouls and the Mules were called for eight.

Mabton 21 9 19 9 --58

Lady Mules 16 16 21 15 --68

On Friday in semifinal play, the Mules faced LaConner, a team who had beaten Wahkiakum's nemesis, the Toutle Lake Ducks, in the opening round. The Mules struggled to catch up with the Braves for more than 24 minutes, but in the fourth quarter, they reached deep into their hearts to turn what had all the hallmarks of a loss into a chance for extra minutes and a thrilling win, 59-51, in overtime.

Poor shooting bedeviled the Mules throughout the game. They shot 27 percent from the floor, hitting only one two pointer and three treys in the first half. They were better from the free throw line, hitting seven for 11 in the first 16 minutes, keeping them within reach. Another six for 10 at the line gave them a 62 percent average for the game.

Bryant continued her hot scoring streak with 18 points and nine rebounds. Wegdahl scored 12 points, pulled down seven rebounds and had two assists and four steals. Souvenir added 11 points, one rebound, seven assists and seven steals. Olsen had nine points, seven rebounds, two assists and one steal. Boyce added eight points, had three rebounds, two assists and two steals. Mace had one point and three rebounds. Thomas and Peacock had one rebound apiece.

Lady Mules 5 13 6 22 13 --59

La Conner 15 10 9 12 5 - 51

On Saturday, the Mules met the number one ranked Okanogan Bulldogs in the State 2B championship game before a big crowd at the Spokane Arena and lost 59-52.

The Bulldogs set the pace with three quick three pointers to start the game, and though the Mules fought hard to stay in the game, they were never able to get hot offensively and trailed Okanogan the entire game.

In the final two minutes of the fourth quarter, the Okanogan coach got comfortable and pulled out his starters, only to put them right back in when Sam Boyce hit a three pointer.

In any other game, that spelled trouble, especially with the clock running down, but on Saturday, in the midst of their third game in a little more than 48 hours, the team's will wasn't enough to spin the same magic they had on previous nights.

Several Mule players found themselves in foul trouble. Bryant, who was averaging 15 points a game at state, was quieted when her fourth foul came early in the third and she went to the bench. Olsen and Peacock ended the game with four fouls apiece and Wegdahl fouled out.

Souvenir led the team with 15 points, shooting seven for seven from the free throw line. She also had seven rebounds, five assists and two steals. Boyce scored 11 points and had four rebounds and three steals. Olsen added 10 points, eight rebounds, two assists and two steals. Wegdahl had seven points, two rebounds, one assist and three steals. Mace, Peacock and Bryant scored three points each. Mace pulled down two rebounds and Bryant had five while Peacock grabbed four. Thomas had one rebound.

The Mules shot 23 percent from the floor and 78 percent from the free throw line.

Okanogan 16 15 13 15 --59

Lady Mules 13 11 12 16 --52

This was the final season for seniors Kaylee Bryant, Sam Boyce, Baylee Olsen, Jessica Thomas, Tori Wegdahl and Marissa Longtain.