1A Girls State: LC Bests Cashmere Again, Moves Into Semis Again

The Lynden Christian girls basketball team took care of a familiar foe and now find themselves in a familiar place: the Class A state semifinals.

The Lyncs reached the semis for the seventh straight time after beating Cashmere, 45-32, in their quarterfinal matchup Thursday morning, March 6, in the Yakima SunDome.

The top-seeded Lyncs (22-3) will take on another familiar opponent, fourth-seeded King’s, in the first semifinal on Friday at 3:45 p.m. with the winner advancing to Saturday’s championship game.

“It feels great to get this over with,” said LC senior Allison Shumate of their first game at the SunDome this season. “It’s always nerve-wracking in the Dome. But this is my last year, so everything will be left on the court. We’ll do what we do best.”

And what is that? “We’ll have that same intensity for four quarters.”

That intensity, especially on defense, was needed as Lynden Christian faced the seventh-seeded Bulldogs (18-9) for the fifth time in the past 10 state tournaments.

Two were epic state finals against Hailey Van Lith, which the Lyncs won. In fact, the Lyncs have won the previous six times the two teams have met, losing only their first encounter in 1981.

“They’re a well-coached, physical team,” said Lynden Christian coach Brady Bomber of the Bulldogs. “We wanted to establish Allison inside. That opened up other things.”

Shumate certainly established herself. The 6-foot post made seven of 11 shots for 15 points and grabbed a game-high 9 rebounds.

“We knew they’d be aggressive and we’d have to be aggressive,” said Shumate. “We had to outwork them.”

The Lyncs then unleashed their bomb squad, making six 3-pointers to keep the Bulldogs at bay. Freshman Tyra Dykstra, the hero of Saturday’s exciting regional comeback, had another three 3-pointers and 11 points, and junior Estela Hernandez had two 3s for 6 points.

Junior Ella Fritts added 8 points and had 3 assists, and senior Danya Dykstra and junior Sara Van Loo had 4 rebounds each.

But the difference was on defense, especially in the first half. The Lyncs held Cashmere to three of 19 from the field, 0 for 8 for 3-pointers, and zero points in the second quarter. At halftime, the Lyncs led by 20 and then used their depth to hold the Bulldogs to their lowest-scoring output of the season.

The only thing keeping Cashmere in the game was free throws. Somehow, the Bulldogs were awarded 17 of them, making 14, while LC got one, which the Lyncs made.

“I was proud of the girls, the way they were able to come out with urgency,” said Bomber of the first-half blitz. “It was a great example of everyone contributing defensively. That is about as good a defensive quarter as we’ve played.”

The Lyncs are now guaranteed their 41st state trophy in 44 state trips. But to reach the state finals for the 23rd time and perhaps claim their 15th state title, they’ll have to get past King’s, another team they’ve faced several times in the past decade.

“We’ve had some good battles with them over the years,” said Bomber. “I’m expecting another one tomorrow.”

Lynden Christian 45, Cashmere 32

Cashmere 9 0 10 13—32

Lynden Christian 14 15 6 10—45

Cashmere: Ella Kenoyer, Allie McKenna 16, Addie Talley 1, Dina Schoengarth 2, Adysen Bjorklund 3, Maisey Loftus, Cali Diaz, Gwen Ledesma 1, Leah Kunz 9, Macie Zimmerman.

Lynden Christian: Danya Dykstra 3, Tyra Dykstra 11, Kortnee Tolsma, Estela Hernandez 6, Ella Fritts 8, Alisa Scott 2, Allison Shumate 15, Sara Van Loo, Kayla Yun, Ellie Pierce, Jocelyn Eshuis.

CLASS 1A GIRLS STATE TOURNAMENT

At Yakima SunDome

Wednesday, March 5

Zillah 78, Wapato 41 (loser out)

Cashmere 35, Montesano 28 (loser out)

Annie Wright 71, Lakeside (9 Mile) 57 (loser out)

Naches Valley 41, Nooksack Valley 37 (loser out)

Thursday, March 6

King’s 78, Zillah 68

Lynden Christian 45, Cashmere 32

Annie Wright 48, Seton Catholic 39

Bellevue Christian 45, Naches Valley 25