Korina Baker wasn't going to let it come down to a free throw with no time left again. Given a second opportunity, the Freeman senior and her determined teammates took care of business right from the start Friday night.

A year after suffering a painful one-point semifinal loss to eventual champion Seattle Christian, the Scotties and their pressure defense jumped all over Lynden Christian and rolled to a 50-32 victory for a spot in Saturday's 9 p.m. state championship game.

"Last year we were so close and got it taken away from us," Baker said. "Now that we've done it, I can't believe it."

You can believe the 21 turnovers that third-ranked Freeman forced in the first half, an onslaught that led to a 29-10 lead at halftime over the No. 2 Lyncs.

"That's the best they've played all season," praised Freeman coach Ashlee Taylor, whose team is forcing an average of 27 turnovers in the tournament. "I thought we might be a little tired but the adrenaline kicked in. Those turnovers, that was huge."

Baker, the team's fiery point guard, delivered a standout floor game with a game-high 15 points, six steals, four rebounds and four assists. She has 17 steals in three games.

Junior MacKenzie Taylor contributed 10 points and 10 rebounds and Baker's backcourt teammate Morghan Poirier also pitched in 10 points.

The Scotties' post-game celebration was a far cry from the stinging disappointment of last year's semifinals, when SC's Lexi Petersen made a free throw with no time on the clock for a 43-42 win.

"This was big for our seniors especially, but everybody was part of that hurt last year," the coach said. "Today I told them to go ahead and use that as fuel and as fire and they definitely did."

For Freeman (25-1) and Granger (24-1), Saturday offers a shot at a first state title for both programs. The Spartans were runner-up in their one championship appearance last year, and the Scotties were second in 2005.