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| Published January 19, 2004 :: Home |
Filled With Intrigue
Shootout features high-profile
cross-classification matchups,
By
SCOTT SANDSBERRY Case in point: Today's Tourneytown.com Shootout, which features two intriguing out-of-classification battles involving four state-ranked teams. At 3:45 p.m., Central Valley -- the 2003 Class 4A state runner-up after back-to-back championship seasons -- will take on perennial 3A power West Valley of Yakima. At 7:30 p.m., Brewster's top-ranked 1A juggernaut -- going for its second straight title and working on a 38-game win streak -- challenges also-unbeaten West Valley, ranked No. 3 in Class 3A. Those games are sandwiched around a 5:30 p.m. contest pitting the pre-eminent 1A girls program of the past four years, Brewster, against arguably this year's best, No. 2-ranked Burbank. Earlier games will pit Columbia B League rivals Riverside Christian and Sunnyside Christian in girls and boys games, followed by No. 5 Granger against Seattle Christian, which has played in each of the last four 1A title games. Central Valley's sixth-ranked girls are 10-1 after a close loss to No. 7 U-High on Friday; the No. 4 Rams (7-1) have lost only on a buzzer-beater in the championship of a California tournament against a team from North Carolina. The game will be a rematch of teams that split two games in summer-league ball, and will showcase great guard play. Central Valley point guard Reagan Pariseau is "one of the best guards in the state, if not the best," according to West Valley coach Jason Rubright, who has one himself in sophomore Cassidy Murillo. He'll have another when Janae Godoy returns from the knee injury that has sidelined her since soccer season. "It's a big game, with two of the top schools in the state," Rubright says, noting that the inter-classification aspect adds cachet to the matchup. "You don't get to see that too often -- that's the thing that's the interesting, the what-if, what if this team played that team." Rubright says the game is on the schedule for the same reason the Rams played the California tournament -- great, tournament-level competition. "Win or lose," he says, "we want to make our team better." That's the same reason West Valley boys coach Jim Berndt enthusiastically agreed to playing Brewster. Even though the Bears are only a 1A team, they've already drilled two 4A teams (one of them ranked), have beaten seven teams whose cumulative record was 28-4 going into their games with Brewster, and are led by 6-foot-6 Gonzaga signee David Pendergraft, already a two-time 1A state player of the year. Brewster and West Valley did face each other in a Spokane summer-league tournament, with the Bears winning by a double-digit margin. But the Rams didn't have 6-8 Andrew Strait, the player most critical to their success, nor did they have 6-5 wing Corey Wehr. "The obvious question is, we've never seen them with Strait," Brewster coach Tim Taylor says. "I know David (Pendergraft) has played against him (in summer ball), and I keep hearing great things about him." Strait, who is averaging 25.3 points and 12 rebounds and will play next year for the University of Montana, doesn't shy away from considering the game a personal matchup with Pendergraft. "To an extent it is, and that's a challenge to look forward to," he said. "He's good, and they're playing well. If we play our game we think we're capable of beating anyone. "I won't get wrapped up in how many points I have and how many he has, just trying to help us win." The rest of the day's lineup is jam-packed with state rankings and glittery records. Riverside Christian's boys (13-0) are ranked No. 1 in Class B; the Crusaders' girls (11-2) are No. 7. Burbank's girls (11-0) are No. 2 in Class 1A, and Brewster's girls (8-2) -- whose only losses have come against Chelan (top-ranked in Class 2A) -- are decidedly undervalued at No. 9. Granger is No. 5 in 1A boys and comes in with a 10-2 record, following a challenging weekend of games against White Swan on Friday (a 39-38 loss) and Zillah (a 55-53 win) on Saturday. Seattle Christian's 5-7 record is deceiving, since it includes losses to two 4A teams, 3A No. 4 Bellingham and 2A No. 2 Steilacoom. The Tourneytown.com Shootout is presented by the
Yakima Herald-Republic, the Central Washington State Fair and the Greater
Yakima Sports Association, and sponsored by the Yakima Herald-Republic.
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