The first time means different things to different people, but they all will have the memories forever.

Six teams — four on the boys side, two on the girls — took home their first state trophies in their programs' histories at the Class 1B state tournament Saturday in the SunDome. The highlight game coming between Tri-Cities Prep and Lummi for fourth and seventh place.

With the Blackhawks playing on their first Saturday after one other state trip and the Jaguars making their first state appearance, the two teams needed an extra quarter to decide the outcome. Tri-Cities Prep pulled away in overtime, holding Lummi to only one basket for a 70-57 victory.

Their efforts awarded the Jaguars the fourth-place trophy in a complete trip through the postseason. An eventful journey, which included a 50-49 upset victory of Moses Lake Christian, the No. 2 team in the state, in the first round Wednesday.

"This is a fun tournament and a good experience," said Tri-Cities coach Joe Perez, whose school is only 10 years old and his program is 2 years younger. "It's hard to explain playing in this type of tournament.

"We met our goal, playing four games and playing on Saturday."

Perez admits his team chases different goals than most larger classification teams as a private school, whose players often come from other small private schools where basketball programs might or might not be well established. So he often spends time teaching kids how to screen and block out along with other values like teamwork and sportsmanship. The winning of this season is just an added bonus for a fledgling program on the rise.

The Jaguars' roster ballooned from the usual 12 players to 22 this season, forcing Perez to juggle a few more people. While he wishes the team could make one trip to Spokane for the old Class B tournament — a goal it missed out on last season — he views this year's first state berth as a great reward.

"This game is for fun," Perez said. "The kids build memories they'll have the rest of their lives, and this is a learning experience.

"The kids will talk about how they were the first group that went to state and how they had fun. They'll talk about finishing fourth and beating the No. 2 team in the state."

Lummi, which joins Liberty Christian (third) and Tulalip Heritage (second) among the first-time state placers on the boys side, will have other memories beside their seventh-place trophy. The Blackhawks might treasure the plaque from the tournament's Teaming Up program even more than the other hardware received Saturday.

Teaming Up, organized by tournament officials, allowed the Lummi players to speak at Adams Elementary School in Wapato. There they talked to kids in kindergarten and anyone else who would listen about how basketball and athletics helped them become better people off the court — similar values that Perez preaches to the Jaguars.

This is one of the experiences that made the Blackhawk community proud of their boys no matter what number ended up being engraved on their first trophy. For these players, the tournament provided a way to grow and build toward becoming better young adults."

"We talked to about every classroom," said Lummi coach Brandon Dennis of the school visit. "At first a couple kids were quiet, but at the end they were all sharing a lot.

"I see a lot of growth because of this tournament, and I'm glad the WIAA recognizes the small schools. There's a lot of good teams here who could play here next week (in the Class 1A state tourney)."

On the girls side, Colton and Entiat took home state trophies for the first time. The Tigers defeated Garfield-Palouse 29-24 to finish fifth, and the Wildcats held off Tekoa-Oakesdale 45-42 to finish third.

Colton battled through the burly Whitman County League — made even tougher by reclassification — to make the first trip to state even sweeter. The team's trophy was an added bonus.

"We have a pretty close group, so it's great being together for four straight days," Wildcat coach Clark Vining said. "To play in this for four straight days and bring home some hardware is special."