Defending champ Seattle Christian, handful of other
contenders have long way to go to Saturday's championship

Granger's Janae Klarich takes the ball upcourt against Colfax in the SunDome Shootout in December.   SARA GETTYS/Yakima Herald-Republic file

After all, the Warriors barely eked out a one-point win over a Bellevue Christian team they'd drubbed by 22 a month earlier, then were less than awe-inspiring in a 41-35 Tri-District final victory over a 10-loss Nooksack Valley.

Trouble? Problems?

Naaah.

"Nooksack Valley could have been the hottest team on the planet when we played them," said Crusaders coach Bob Kickner, whose 21-2 team has lost only to Class 4A Kentlake and 3A Mount Rainier. "They beat Lynden Christian in their district championship" -- a 52-41 upset that marked the Pioneers' first win over LC since 2003 -- "and they're playing very good basketball."

By losing, the Lyncs ran the risk of playing a district champion in the first round, meaning they could have faced one of the other favorites -- like Freeman (22-1) or Granger (21-1).

"You know how close we came to having Lynden Christian playing Freeman? I would have done a dance right then," said Kickner, who was there at Sunday's WIAA tournament draw when Lynden Christian was one of the last teams remaining on the board. "It could have been Freeman. It could have been Granger."

Instetad, Lynden Christian drew Rainier out of the Southwest District, while Seattle Christian drew Connell and Granger faces a Vashon team the Spartans have already beaten by 20 this season. Freeman faces a team that, like Nooksack Valley (15-10), is coming on late -- Zillah, which has won 10 of its last 12 games after a 5-6 start.

And, at this point, Kickner noted, nobody has an easy road to the title.

"We're a young team. It's going to be a battle every night," Kickner said. "Hey, Granger took a loss late (to Zillah), Lynden Christian took a loss late, and whether we played well or not last week is debatable. The only team that hasn't had a hiccup is Freeman.

"This is 1A. It's state-tournament time. I'm really excited to be coming to Yakima. This is probably the best show in the state, at the best site in the state, with the best coverage in the state.

"I'm just glad to be a part of it."