T O U R N E Y T O W N  ARCHIVES

This page is part of the Tourneytown.com archives and is no longer updated.

By SCOTT SPRUILL
YAKIMA HERALD-REPUBLIC

Missy Beierman didn't even need to look at the Class 2A state tournament girls bracket. She was already overjoyed just to be in it.

But when she got her first glance, the Ephrata coach was even more delighted.

"The top half of the bracket is definitely the place to be, and I love being up there," said Beierman, whose bracket-busting Tigers come in with a district title despite a 12-11 record. "We're certainly in with some quality teams, but if you could pick you'd be a fool to take the bottom half."

And how.

The bottom half contains five of the top six teams in the final state poll -- top-ranked and unbeaten Blaine (22-0), No. 2 Chelan (21-2), No. 4 East Valley (22-2), No. 5 Lakeside (19-3) and No. 6 Tenino (20-3).

It's a heavily weighted semifinal bracket that will get off to a flying start Wednesday night when defending champion East Valley (22-2) takes on 2001 champion Lakeside (19-3) at 5:30 p.m.

Coach Patrick Green, whose Blaine team remained undefeated despite a demanding non-conference schedule and a tough district tournament, agrees the path to Saturday night will be difficult.

"I would hope our kids would approach this as not expecting to back into anything. We're here to play the best teams," he said. "If you get a tough draw to tell your kids they have to be ready to play their best game every day, but you'd tell them that anyway."

That said, Green paused and then added, "I look at Nooksack (a team Blaine beat for the Northwest District title) and think, well, things are pretty nice up them up in the top half."

The Borderites placed fourth here a year ago with only two seniors, and they didn't shy away from a challenge this season, beating big-school teams from Burlington, Ferndale, Inglemoor and Eastlake.

"We have won some real intense games and played well when it mattered," Green said. "We haven't blown many teams out -- we've been tested numerous times and won a couple games in overtime. It's games like those where our experience has really showed."

Loaded as the bottom half is, Wednesday's early games will offer a compelling first-day matchup when Woodland -- the tournament's other unbeaten entry at 23-0 -- faces seventh-ranked Pullman at 10:30 a.m.

Woodland has withstood the loss of standout point guard Ashley Rodman to a knee injury and still turned back Tenino last week in the Southwest District championship.

"It's pretty remarkable that we're unbeaten, especially without our best player," said Woodland coach Glen Flanagan. "We're not flashy -- I'm sure everybody wants to take a shot at us. But we've got intelligent kids who work extremely hard. That's what got us through losing Ashley.

"I'm glad to be on the other side from Chelan and Blaine and East Valley, but our only concern is Pullman," he added. "That's our challenge on Wednesday."

With its top two scorers -- Sarah Schramm and Coco Poirier -- returning from its state runner-up team, Chelan (21-2) reeled off 21 straight wins before falling to upstart Ephrata in Saturday's CWAC district finale. The Goats only other loss was a season-opener to 1A state champ Brewster, which they later avenged.

"We knew we had the possibly of a very good team, but we do start two freshmen," said Chelan coach Mike Haerling, referring to Cassy Pilkinton and Mandy Watson. "We played Brewster and (state 1A runner-up) Tonasket twice and tough were good games to have, especially for the younger kids we have."

Lakeside is making its 10th straight trip to state and has a rich history with two championships and seven trophies. Despite the graduation of all-around star Jen Barcus, the Eagles enter their opener Wednesday night against East Valley with an 11-game win streak.

Eatonville (24-2) has the most wins in the 16-team field and is in the top half with a 12:30 p.m. opener against Connell. The Cruisers were 21-1 last year before falling twice at state.

By far the most surprising and unpredictable team is Beierman's Tigers. A team that was once 4-9 this season knocked off Kiona-Benton, East Valley and Chelan to capture the CWAC district crown.

Ephrata has two 3-point sharp-shooters in seniors Traci Mickle and Jana Flannery, who combined to hit six of nine treys in Saturday's upset over Chelan.

"It seems like it means more when nobody expects you to do something like that," the coach said. "We were celebrating just getting over .500 -- this is the first time this season we've done it."

If the Tigers remain hot from the perimeter and get some balance inside, their record may be the most deceptive in the tournament.

"We're definitely coming in under the radar and we love it that way," Beierman said. "Not to long ago it seemed like we'd never get here. Now everything's a bonus."

© 2003 All photos, content and design are properties of the Yakima Herald-Republic.

For questions or additional information about this site,
e-mail us at: