Josh Kirshenbaum for BlastZoneMedia.com / blastzonenews@gmail.com

Prep Girls Basketball / History

The area has seen eight state champions in girls basketball — four on each side of the mighty Columbia River. Here’s a rundown of everyone who’s lifted a gold ball at the end of the season, and all the runners-up, too.

— Content below this line is reserved for paid subscribers. Thank you for helping sustain Blast Zone Media. We depend on your support in order to continue reporting on local athletics. Consider showing your support today. —

Read more

Sam Barbee for BlastZoneMedia.com / blastzonenews@gmail.com

Prep Basketball / Senior All-Star Report

MYKLEBUST GYMNASIUM — It’s just a silly all-star game. Fouls weren’t tracked. Points barely were. There was a score but it didn’t matter, not really.

But that doesn’t mean the Lower Columbia Senior All-Star Game is completely devoid of value, of meaning. Not when last chances and lasting memories for the scrapbook were on the line.

White beat Red 74-73 in the girls game opener, then White won again 120-92 in the boys contest to conclude the evening. There were familial bonds to enjoy, both in terms of genetics, zip codes, and shared experiences. There were bitter old rivalries to put to bed and bad tastes to wash out of mouths.

It’s just a silly all-star game, but it’s also more than that.

— Content below this line is reserved for paid subscribers. Thank you for helping sustain Blast Zone Media. We depend on your support in order to continue reporting on local athletics. Consider showing your support today. —

Read more

BlastZoneMedia.com / blastzonenews@gmai.com

Prep Girls Basketball / Photo Gallery

MYKLEBUST GYMNASIUM — Team White, led by a trio of Toutle Lake Fighting Ducks, was able to fend off Team Red for a 74-73 win in the Lower Columbia Senior All-Star Game, Tuesday, at Lower Columbia College.

The event served as an opportunity for punctuation and celebration and for local hoopers who recently wrapped up their prep careers competing for their respective high schools.

Editor’s. Note: Be sure to subscribe and keep scrolling for additional information, including photos and videos of the All-Star Game action.

— Content below this line is reserved for paid subscribers. Thank you for helping sustain Blast Zone Media. We depend on your support in order to continue reporting on local athletics. Consider showing your support today. —

Read more

BlastZoneMedia.com / blastzonenews@gmail.com

Boys Prep Basketball / Photo Gallery

MYKLEBUST GYMNASIUM — Team White, which featured all four seniors from R.A. Long, was able to run away from Team Red by a score of 120-92 in the annual Lower Columbia Senior All-Star Game on Tuesday.

The event served as punctuation for local hoopers who recently wrapped up their prep careers competing for their respective high schools.

Editor’s. Note: Be sure to subscribe and keep scrolling for additional information, including photos and videos of the All-Star Game action.

— Content below this line is reserved for paid subscribers. Thank you for helping sustain Blast Zone Media. We depend on your support in order to continue reporting on local athletics. Consider showing your support today. —

Read more

BlastZoneMedia.com / blastzonenews@gmail.com

Prep Basketball / Senior All-Stars

The best senior basketball players from around Southwest Washington and Northwest Oregon will be descending upon Myklebust Gymnasium on Tuesday evening for one last run to cap their stellar high school careers.

Schools represented from inside The Blast Zone include Kelso, R.A. Long, Kalama, Castle Rock, Toledo, Toutle Lake, Wahkiakum, Ilwaco and Rainier. And school from just outside BZM proper include Adna, Napavine, Pe Ell, Ridgefield, King’s Way, Fort Vancouver and Columbia River.

The nature of all showcase events dictates that an asterisk must be attached to all pregame rosters, but this season’s matchups are lining up for some interesting storylines.

On the girls’ side, the pregame roster provided to the media includes just six players from outside the local area, and they’ll be plenty familiar to serious basketball fans who’ve been following along all season. Just how those former teammates and league foes will be paired up remains to be seen.

And on the boy’s side there’s a 2A Greater St. Helens League rematch brewing. Four senior R.A. Long Lumberjacks are listed on Team White and they’ll get to run it back one more time against a Team White side that includes three Columbia River Rapids and one Ridgefield Spudder.

And, of course, the Lower Columbia showcase is always a great place for small town stars to put their talents on display — and to see where their game stacks up against the best of the best.

The girls will get the action started at Myklebust Gymnasium with tipoff set for 6 p.m. The boys game will follow, with the jump ball slated for 7:30 p.m.

Admission to the games is $10 for adults, and $7 for students, seniors or military/veterans. The event is a fundraiser for the LCC men’s and women’s basketball programs.

Share Blast Zone Media

The Girls Roster

• Bri Garwood, R.A. Long

• Peyton Champagne, Kelso

• Lainey Dean, Toutle Lake

• Kendal Dean , Toutle Lake

• Payton Thayer, Toutle Lake

• Dakota Davis, Castle Rock

• Ryah Stanley, Toledo

• Jesse LaFever, Wahkikaum

• Sophie Bittner, Napavine

• Taylen Evander, Napavine

• Hayden Kaut, Napavine

• Rhylee Beebe, Adna

• Peyton Zock, Pe Ell

• Ava King, Pe Ell

• Madi Engel, Pe Ell

Share

The Boys Roster

Team White

• Josh Crane, R.A. Long

• Cam Newsome, R.A. Long

• Landon Irwin, R.A. Long

• Jeff Rooklidge, R.A. Long

• Cooper Callon, Toledo

• Trevin Gale, Toledo

• Adam Kruger, Toledo

• Abel Koski, Kalama

• Dylan Pelas, Ilwaco

• Jackson Lovato, King’s Way

Team Red

• Alex Dieter, Kelso

• Anthony Robinson, Kelso

• Bronson Miller, Kelso

• Parker Leitz, Wahkiakum

• Quentin Jackson, Rainier

• Hudson Chambers, Napavine

• Jaxen Appelt, Fort Vancouver

• Jamison McCann, Ridgefield

• Alex Pont, Columbia River

• Luca Phillips, Columbia River

• Kellen Clary, Columbia River

In Case You Missed It

Jordan Nailon for BlastZoneMedia.com / blastzonenews@gmail.com

2A Prep Boys Basketball / Photo Gallery

SUNDOME – The R.A. Long boys basketball team likely isn’t quite ready yet to to move on from a heartbreaking 45-43 loss to Bremerton in t the 2A State Tournament, Saturday, in Yakima. In fact, the Lumberjacks might not be ready to see the silver lining tomorrow, next week, next month, or even next year. But that doesn’t mean there weren’t incredible moments along the way that one way or the other – someday or another – deserve to be remembered.

The Lumberjacks saw their run at a perfect season and a state championship spoiled in the final moments of an otherwise flawless campaign, but that doesn’t change the fact that the record books at R.A. Long must now be almost completely re-written.

The second place trophy represents the best finish for R.A. Long boys basketball in the school’s 100-year history, eclipsing their third place finishes from 1939 and 2025. The Jacks’ undefeated regular season was also a first for the program, and head coach Jeray Key has been re-setting the new mark for most wins at RAL since a victory over Grandview in the Regional round. What’s more, the Jacks’ 27 wins are a new school record for a single season, and their 28-game win streak that dates back to last year’s state semifinal contest (against Bremerton) is also a school record.

That’s an awful lot of accomplishments to bottle up in one season, and that list didn’t even include RAL’s 2A GSHL and 2A District IV championships. And still, there’s more for the Jacks to be proud of — whenever they’re ready to let that happen.

Editor’s Note: For additional coverage from the 2A state championship game be sure to subscribe and continue scrolling. Game coverage from R.A. Long’s loss to Bremerton in the finals can be found by clicking the link above.

— Content below this line is reserved for paid subscribers. Thank you for helping sustain Blast Zone Media. We depend on your support in order to continue reporting on local athletics. Consider showing your support today. —

Read more

BlastZoneMedia.com / blastzonenews@gmail.com

2B Prep Girls Basketball / State Report

SPOKANE – There are no shortcuts from Kid Valley to the Spokane Arena, and a chain of volcanic mountains might somehow be the least of those obstacles. For proof, all you need to do is ask the Toutle Lake girls basketball team, which just finished in sixth place at the 2B State Tournament to claim East Cowlitz County’s first trophy in more than a decade.

Toutle Lake head coach Daren Dean took over the program six years ago, and reaching the final day of the season in Spokane, otherwise known as Trophy Day, was always the goal. But life in the Central 2B League means that there is precious little margin for error, and getting out of the District IV Tournament can prove trickier than slipping out of a rusty bear trap.

So when the No. 6 ranked Fighting Ducks finished in sixth place following a 76-51 loss to No. 2 ranked Northwest Christian, Saturday, it was a they had somehow fallen short.

“We did finish fourth in our league and then sixth in the state,” TL head coach Daren Dean said. “However you want to chalk it up, I’m just happy with the season. Taking a trophy home and we reached it. I couldn’t be more proud of how hard they worked these last four days, and all season.”

— Content below this line is reserved for paid subscribers. Thank you for helping sustain Blast Zone Media. We depend on your support in order to continue reporting on local athletics. Consider showing your support today. —

Read more

Jordan Nailon for Blast Zone Media / blastzonenews@gmail.com

SUNDOME – And-1. It’s a phrase that typically comes with positive connotations on the basketball court – as in, you just made a shot, drew a foul, and now you get to shoot a free throw for your troubles. Good for you!

But for R.A. Long the ubiquitous phrase of the hardwood has now assumed a new, more ominous meaning – as in, 27-1.

Twenty seven wins and one loss. A nearly perfect season tarnished on the final day, in the final quarter, in the final minute.

And-1.

After another historic season of rewriting the record books at Longview’s original high school, it’s the “and one” and questions about what might’ve been that will linger with these Lumberjacks following a 45-43 loss to Bremerton in the 2A State championship game, Saturday, in Yakima.

“There was a lot of silence in there for a while. Everybody’s hurting,” RAL head coach Jeray Key said after finally emerging from a somber locker room postgame. “Like I told the guys, in this moment it’s going to sting… it’s something you’ll never forget.”

Despite being undefeated, seeded No. 2 in the tournament and ranked No. 1 in the RPI all season long, the Lumberjacks did not have many believers in the fans who weren’t exclusively wearing red and black. That’s not a knock on the Jacks, it’s just a testament to how good the (now) two-time defending State champion Knights are. But flying too close to the sun doesn’t shield anyone from the pain of defeat, it only makes the sting burn worse.

— Content below this line is reserved for paid subscribers. Thank you for helping sustain Blast Zone Media. We depend on your support in order to continue reporting on local athletics. Consider showing your support today. —

Read more

Josh Kirshenbaum for BlastZoneMedia.com / blastzonenews@gmail.com

Prep Boys Basketball / History

The formerly undefeated and No. 2 ranked R.A. Long Lumberjacks had the chance to become the sixth area boys basketball program to bring home a state title when they took to the Yakima Sundome floor Saturday to play No. 1 ranked Bremerton.

The Jacks led late, but wound up falling 45-43 in their first-ever state title appearance. In the interest of knowing our history, read up on the 10 teams to successfully claim state crowns in The Blast Zone, and remember the runner-ups, too.

— Content below this line is reserved for paid subscribers. Thank you for helping sustain Blast Zone Media. We depend on your support in order to continue reporting on local athletics. Consider showing your support today. —

Read more

Jordan Nailon for BlastZoneMedia.com / blastzonenews@gmail.com

2A Prep Boys Basketball / State Report

YAKIMA – If basketball games could be won in the opening minutes then the Lumberjacks could have saved everybody – most of all themselves – a lot of time and energy Friday night in the semifinals of the 2A State boys basketball tournament.

The still undefeated and No. 2 R.A. Long boys basketball team opened the game on a 14-3 run and led by 19 points late in the second quarter. Most of that damage was done by senior Jeff Rooklidge, who opened the evening’s scoring with a quick 3-pointer and finished the first quarter with 10 points. Rooklidge wound up going 4-for-4 from beyond the arc in the first half, and finished with a game-high 21 points to go with six rebounds.

“Everything was just going in,” Rooklidge said.

That performance, which helped RAL earn a spot in the State title game for the first time in school history, was not some happy accident.

“I don’t want to toot my own horn or anything but I think I’ve shot more shots in the gym this week than anybody, so I’m so confident,” Rooklidge added. “I know I can knock down shots. I just know I’m built for these moments. I’m good in tough games and I can get the job done for my team when I need to.”

Now, if you think a game that featured zero ties and the same number of lead changes was probably a snooze fest – well – wait until you hear how things went down in crunch time. And if you want a hint – just know that the Seahawks knocked down a 3-pointer with 9.1 seconds left in the game to pull within three points.

A slip on a wet sport on the court here. A step on an untied shoelace there. The Jacks were just one stroke of misfortune away from winding up as the team that didn’t want to go to overtime. And who knows what could have happened then.

But as it stands, R.A. Long will be playing for its first State championship in any sport since the 1996 softball team brought home the gold trophy. And win or lose, it will be the biggest trophy the Lumberjacks of the hardwood have ever put in the trophy case.

“We probably celebrated more on the court,” RAL head coach Jeray Key said of the postgame scene in the locker room. “We just went in there and talked and guys were happy, but we’ve got one more and that’s what our goal has been.

“We’re trying to stay level right now and not get too hyped. And probably because we used all of our energy out there in that one, we’ve got a lot of recovery to do.”

The Jacks will have to get that recovery taken care of quickly, because it’s going to be a quick turnaround to play for all the marbles. After back-to-back late night tipoffs, the Jacks will be playing in the matinee time slot on Saturday against No. 1 ranked Bremerton.

— VIDEO: The R.A. Long Lumberjacks move their team name along on the big bracket after defeated Anaocrts 53-49 in their 2A State semifinal contest, Friday, March 6, at the Yakima SunDome. The Jacks will play Bremerton in the State title tilt on Saturday afternoon. / Video by Jordan Nailon for Blast Zone Media —

— Content below this line is reserved for paid subscribers. Thank you for helping sustain Blast Zone Media. We depend on your support in order to continue reporting on local athletics. Consider showing your support today. —

Read more

BlastZoneMedia.com / blastzonenews@gmail.com

2B Prep Girls Basketball / State Report

SPOKANE – The Toutle Lake girls basketball team features a trio of seniors who have been logging varsity minutes since their eighth grade season, so it may seem strange that on the penultimate day of their prep careers those Fighting Ducks were still finding ways to improve their game.

Well, that’s just what happens when a team plays three straight early bird games at the Spokane Arena and survives to tell the tale. The No. 6 ranked Ducks most recent 9 a.m. tipoff resulted in a 47-43 win over No. 7 Adna in overtime of their loser-out contest, Friday morning, advancing the East Cowlitz County hoopers to the trophy round of the girls state tournament for the first time since 2015.

And what is the Ducks’ reward for beating the rooster three straight days? That would be an even earlier start in their season finale, with Saturday’s fourth place trophy tilt set to start at 8 a.m.

Not that Toutle Lake is worried about another early wakeup call..

“We’re conditioned for it now,” asserted TL head coach Daren Dean.

But if the Ducks aren’t worried now, their fans certainly were early in the loser-out matchup with Adna when the Pirates scored the first eight points of the game. Toutle Lake and the Pirates split their two meetings prior to the rubber match in Spokane, with Adna winning the league contest in January and the Ducks taking their District affair in February. With their season on the line this time, it was an incredibly inopportune time for TL to endure an offensive drought.

— Content below this line is reserved for paid subscribers. Thank you for helping sustain Blast Zone Media. We depend on your support in order to continue reporting on local athletics. Consider showing your support today. —

Read more

Jordan Nailon for BlastZoneMedia.com / blastzonenews@gmail.com

2A Prep Boys Basketball / State Report

YAKIMA — The No. 2 ranked R.A. Long boys basketball team is headed back to the State semifinals for the second straight season, and the third time in the last five years, and this time they’ll be walking through the doors to the SunDome boasting a perfect record and a heap of hard-earned and well-deserved confidence.

— VIDEO: The R.A. Long Lumberjacks move their team name along in the bracket on the wall at the Yakima SunDome after defeating Renton 55-45 in the State quarterfinals on Thursday. / Video by Jordan Nailon for Blast Zone Media —

Lumberjacks 27th consecutive victory with a 55-45 win over No. 8 Renton in the quarterfinals of the 2A State Tournament on Thursday. In fact, R.A. Long (26-0) has now gone a full calendar year in between losses, with its most recent defeat coming last season in the State semifinals.

“We knew we were the dangerous matchup,” RAL head coach Jeray Key said. “That’s a good team, but like we’ve been all year — we’re just taking it one game at a time. We play hard. We play as hard as anyone out there and as long as we do that we can hang with anybody.”

But to onlookers, the Red Hawks certainly appeared to present a formidable challenge. Renton’s stock went up 24-hours earlier with.a resounding victory over Lynden in the Round of 12, and its roster passed the pregame eye check with flying colors thanks to length, strength, speed and two(!) regular rotation players in sport goggles (see: rec specs).

— Content below this line is reserved for paid subscribers. Thank you for helping sustain Blast Zone Media. We depend on your support in order to continue reporting on local athletics. Consider showing your support today. —

Read more

BlastZoneMedia.com / blastzonenews@gmail.com

2B Prep Girls Basketball / State Report

SPOKANE – The No. 6 ranked Toutle Lake girls basketball team went cold from the field at a most unfortunate junction on Thursday. After working hard to keep things close before halftime, the Fighting Ducks scored just three points in the third quarter on the way to a 68-43 loss to No.5 ranked Cle Elum-Roslyn in the quarterfinals of the 2B State Tournament.

“We made a little run in the second and it was manageable at the half,” Toutle Lake head coach Daren Dean said. “But offensively we just went cold in the third quarter and had a few turnovers that were costly.”

The defeat sends the Ducks to the dark side of the bracket where they will face a familiar foe in a loser-out contest – the No. 7 ranked Adna Pirates.

In their quarterfinal affair the Ducks came out looking like they were ready to get the worm in their second straight 9 a.m. tipoff at the Spokane Arena. Toutle Lake came out and went toe to toe with the Warriors over the first four minutes, but a clerical snafu was the first sign of bad things to come for the East Cowlitz County crew.

— Content below this line is reserved for paid subscribers. Thank you for helping sustain Blast Zone Media. We depend on your support in order to continue reporting on local athletics. Consider showing your support today. —

Read more

Jordan Nailon for BlastZoneMedia.com / blastzonenews@gmail.com

2A Prep Basketball / History

The historians at R.A. Long High School have been busy rewriting the record books this week after the Lumberjacks picked up yet another victory on the hardwood last Saturday in the Regional round of the 2A State Tournament. That triumph over Grandview gave head coach Jeray Key the most wins in program history, passing legendary former sideline prowler Kyle Fowler on his way to the top of the list.

— VIDEO: Highlights from R.A. Long’s 49-38 win over Grandview in the Regional round of the 2A State Tournament, Saturday, Feb. 28, at Kelso High School. / Video by Patrick Durgeloh for Blast Zone Media —

“He’s an awesome coach,” RAL freshman Cash Coates said after helping to shoot the Jacks to another victory. “I know with this win he’s now the all-time leader for wins, which is awesome. He’s a one of a kind guy, really.”

For his part, Key was less enthused to talk about his own accomplishment. He’s been too busy focusing on a State championship all season to talk about much, really.

“I guess it’s pretty cool. I didn’t even put much thought into it this year,” Key said. “I just know that over the last four or five years we’ve gone over twenty wins. It’s hard to do that in any season, so to do that four out of five years is pretty amazing.”

Fowler, who was on hand for the opening round of the state tournament as per usual, finished his tenure in charge of the Jacks with 136 wins. Now, Key has 137 victories and there’s no looking back – and there’s nobody happier to see it happen than Fowler himself.

“To see this program where it is now, especially the last few years where Jeray has it at a very high level, it’s actually rewarding to me,” Fowler said.

It might have happened a little quicker than Fowler expected, but that’s what a 26-game win streak will do. R.A. Long (25-0) hasn’t lost since the State semifinals last season, and is as hot as any team in all the land entering the State quarterfinals Thursday night. That undefeated run to this point in the season has included another 2A Greater St. Helens League championship to go with a District title.

“This year was amazing, obviously,” Fowler said. “Nobody’s done this at R.A. Long.”

— VIDEO: R.A. Long’s Josh Crane sinks a runner in the lane before the halftime buzzer to help the Lumberjacks to a 49-38 win over Grandview in the Regional round of the 2A State Tournament, Saturday, Feb. 28, at Kelso High School. / Video by Jordan Nailon for Blast Zone Media —

Now, the Jacks are trying to improve on last year’s third place finish – which currently stands as a school record high-water mark.

Lumberjack fans of a certain vintage will recall that Fowler’s teams made several captivating runs of their own, including the 2003-04 campaign when R.A. Long defeated the crosstown rivals from Mark Morris for the District title up at St. Martin’s Pavillion.

“The credit I give to him is they were 3A then so they played some tougher teams at times,” Key said. “To have really good seasons in that era you had to be really, really good. And for him to win league titles and win a District title over Mark Morris back in that golden era when they were so good, is really impressive.”

The newspaper clippings detailing the highlights of that season still hang in the trophy case in the foyer of The Lumberdome, and the ink on its pages has faded more than Fowler’s own memory of that day.

Now, when he sees players he used to coach watching from the stands it stands as evidence of the culture he helped to curate during his fiery time in charge of the Jacks.

Fowler has been watching all along. He was watching back when he was a young buck living on 30th Ave. and hanging around the school until he picked up a gig as a ball boy. And Fowler was watching after both his playing days and coaching days were finished, rooting for the Jacks from his perch behind the pep band even during the lean seasons. It still matters to him. It has always mattered to him.

“It’s a lot of years. It’s been a hard run,” Fowler said. “It’s been challenging and then at the same time it’s been very rewarding to hold onto that. And to see them come out, that’s why I love bleeding red and black. I always will.”

Just like Fowler, Key grew up within shouting distance of the school campus. He also grew up watching the Lumberjacks and dreaming of the day it would be his turn to compete for R.A. Long.

“He’s always had a drive,” Fowler said of Key. “His grandpa (Larry Petersen), him and I actually used to play city league basketball together and we were on the same team together and we had a lot of frickin’ fun man. I think he saw that as a kid as well, and I think that’s why we’ve connected.”

Key’s brothers, Dominique Petersen and Kennan Marin, both played for R.A. Long. But that’s where the parallels end, because Key transferred to Mark Morris prior to his freshman season. It’s an inconvenient truth for many R.A. Long fans, but all you have to do is read the All-State banners that hang on the baseline above Natt Court to read Key’s name amongst the rest of the All-Time great Monarchs.

“He went to Mark Morris and we battled against each other quite a bit, even when my son (Luke) was going here,” Fowler said.

Pairing up with his cousin, Jyles Petersen, Key and the Monarchs made it all the way to the State title game – and they were a perennial thorn in R.A. Long’s side. But those bygones are way under the bridge by now, and even Jyles has switched over his wardrobe to red and black to match the Lumberjacks.

Fowler knows Key (and Jyles) would have been natural Lumberjacks, and he believes his old foe is coming around to see what he missed out on by taking his talents across the lake during his prep playing days.

“He actually last year said, ‘Hey, I would have loved to have been a Lumberjack, too,’” Fowler said. “He understands now that we’re kind of like the step kid – like Oregon and Oregon State or Washington and Washington State, the same type of feeling, so you always have a little chip on your shoulder.”

When Key first joined the coaching staff at R.A. Long he was serving under the direction of Rally Wallace. Eventually, Key and Wallace wound up as co-head coaches for the Lumberjacks over the course of three seasons. For the record, the 30 or so wins accumulated during that season officially belong to Wallace and do not count toward the all-time record. But those early days on the sideline together bonded Key and “The Big Fella”, and now they are reunited on the bench together with Wallace working as an assistant and specializing on coaching R.A. Long’s post players.

“As much as people thought (being co-head coaches) was a weird deal, really in our eyes it wasn’t,” Key said. “I was just young and wanted to help. There was no hard feeling between the two of us… It was nice to have him come back and work with our bigs because he was a great player in his day.”

According to Fowler, that ability to commit to a home and gracefully handle transitions of power has been essential to helping the Lumberjacks become one of the State’s perennial elite programs. This day in age, both of those traits are easier to preach than to practice. And all the winning is another thing entirely.

“I have a lot of buddies in the state who talk about them, and talk about R.A. Long,” Fowler said. “I look at it and Rally took over for me and had a few really good seasons and did a great job with the administrative part and driving them. And then Jeray just kept on going. I always thought he would leave, but he just stayed right here.”

Speaking of coaches who did or didn’t stay, that’s a bit of a sore spot for Fowler. After he retired the floor at The Lumberdome was revamped and renamed in honor of former head coach Joe Moses – who won most of his games as head coach at Mark Morris. Safe to say Fowler hopes there’s not a similar turn in the cards for Key someday and he appreciates being included in the program – even climbing the ladder to help cut down the District net at each opportunity as a matter of tradition.

“I love Joe Moses. He’s a wonderful coach and a wonderful man, but the problem is that (decision) was all about money. He had more wins overall, but not more at R.A. Long,” Fowler said. “So that means a lot to me to have Jeray come in and make that real and the acknowledgment of it. It’s kind of been swept under the rug because I became a Hall of Famer (at RAL), but that’s because of what I did here, not necessarily from when I coached here.”

That bond between Key and Fowler was put on full display when Key interrupted our interview in order to exchange hugs. At that time, Key was one win away from tying the all-time wins record, and Fowler was doing what he does best by boisterously rooting him on.

“We’re cool. He’s always been a cool guy to me. He’s always supportive. He’s always around,” Key said. “It’s a tradition and we want to keep this thing going at R.A. Long. Anyone who’s been a coach or a player, we just want to keep them together.”

Key even has a favorite memory from watching Fowler during his coaching days, and it comes from the Civil War at The Lumberdome during that aforementioned 2003-04 season when a hard foul on the baseline led to a confrontation at mid court and at least one water bottle tossed from the MM student section that struck Fowler in the head.

“Probably being at a Civil War and (Fowler) and Bakamus meeting up at half court face to face,” Key recalled. “I’m thinking, these guys are crazy! Words were all exchanged and they were just frothing at the mouth.”

And even the R.A. Long players who don’t have memories of Fowler raising a ruckus at The Lumberdome have come to appreciate the history of the program – and the unique leadership of Key in an era of lowered expectations for student athletes.

“Without our coaches we definitely wouldn’t be where we are,” RAL senior Cam Newsome said. “And the players; our chemistry is just so good.”

Josh Crane, the 2A GSHL MVP this season, agreed with Newsome’s assessment – and then some.

“To me, as much as I can say it’s about the players and what we do on the court, I really feel like it starts with the coaching staff and Jeray Key himself,” Crane said. “He’s a really good coach. He prepares us. He holds us accountable, off the court — on the court. He just turns us all into good men.”

Up Next

R.A. Long (25-0) will play No. 8 ranked Renton (15-13) at the Yakima Valley SunDome in the State quarterfinals, Thursday, at 9 p.m.

A victory would advance the Lumberjacks to play either No. 5 Tumwater or No. 6 Anacortes in the semifinals on Friday at 9 p.m.. A loss would drop the Jacks into a loser-out contest against one of the same two teams in the consolation bracket on Friday at 2 p.m.

Share Blast Zone Media

Coach Said What?

In Case You Missed It

BlastZoneMedia.com / blastzonenews@gmail.com

2B Prep Boys Basketball / State Report

SPOKANE — It’s been said that there are no happy endings, just stories that ended before they were through. Whether that is true or not can be debated by poets and philosophers until the sun collapses and explodes, but its almost certain that the Toledo boys basketball team agrees with the sentiment this morning.

For the second straight year the Riverhawks were knocked out of the 2B State Tournament in the Round of 12, this time with a 63-55 loss to No. 12 Burbank (Columbia) on Wednesday evening at the Spokane Arena.

The loss comes on the heels of a one-point defeat at the hands of Tri-Cities Prep in the Regional round. Yes, the same TCP Jaguars who defeated Toledo in the State football championship game back in December.

Toledo and its four senior starters repeated as District champions this season, but there’s no doubt they had their hearts set on playing in Spokane until the final day of the season.

“I thought a four seed for us was gracious,” Toledo head coach Grady Fallon said. “I appreciated it because we won the District title and that should count for something. But clearly we weren’t the fourth best team in the state.”

— Content below this line is reserved for paid subscribers. Thank you for helping sustain Blast Zone Media. We depend on your support in order to continue reporting on local athletics. Consider showing your support today. —

Read more

Jordan Nailon for BlastZoneMedia.com / blastzonenews@gmail.com

2A Prep Girls Basketball / State Report

YAKIMA — A full season of basketball is too complex to be summarized by just 32 minutes of action. The Mark Morris girls basketball team would certainly agree, and they wouldn’t want to spend too much time talking about their final effort of 20205-26, either.

On Wednesday the No. 10 ranked Monarchs saw their season end with a 67-32 loss to No. 2 Deer Park in the Round of 12 at the 2A State Tournament in the Yakima SunDome.

Foul trouble and turnovers combined to make a toxic stew that MM could not free itself from. The contest wound up reaching running clock territory when the Monarchs fell behind by 40 points midway through the fourth quarter, and the rest is history.

Of course, it’s true that history is complicated and Mark Morris would certainly agree. Head coach Sean Atkins was able to get his team to the SunDome in his first season at the helm for MM a decade ago. Since then his teams have lost in a winner-to-State elimination game four times, so simply getting back to the final site was an accomplishment worth celebrating.

“They met the goal of getting here and I’ve been so close so many times,” Atkins said. “It felt good to get back here.”

— Content below this line is reserved for paid subscribers. Thank you for helping sustain Blast Zone Media. We depend on your support in order to continue reporting on local athletics. Consider showing your support today. —

Read more

BlastZoneMedia.com / blastzonenews@gmail.com

1B Prep Boys Basketball / State Report

SPOKANE — The Wahkiakum boys basketball team will not be bringing hardware home from Spokane this season. An offensive power outage over the first three quarters of the Mules’ matchup with Columbia Adventist in the Round of 12 at the 1B State Tournament, Wednesday, led to a 57-52 season-ending loss at Spokane Arena.

The No. 8 ranked Mules were out of sorts for most of the loser-out contest and couldn’t get on track before it was too late.

“The first three quarters we didn’t have a lot of energy,” Wahkiakum head coach Rob Garrett said. “It was a lot of guys standing and watching, and that’s not going to be a good recipe for success over here, especially against a team like that that does the complete opposite.”

And that team is a foe the Mules know all too well. Wahkiakum and Columbia Adventist split their regular season contests, before the Cathlamet cagers won the rubber match in a tiebreaker to determine the 1B Columbia Valley League title.

But the No. 17 Kodiaks wound up with the last laugh on the biggest stage, far, far from the familiar bends of the lower Columbia River back home.

— Content below this line is reserved for paid subscribers. Thank you for helping sustain Blast Zone Media. We depend on your support in order to continue reporting on local athletics. Consider showing your support today. —

Read more

BlastZoneMedia.com / blastzonenews@gmail.com

2B Prep Girls Basketball / State Report

SPOKANE — The girls on the Toutle Lake basketball team have played plenty of Egg McMuffin Games in their careers, but it’s safe to say none of them were as consequential as Wednesday’s Round of 12 matchup at the Spokane Arena in the 2B State Tournament.

With their season on the line the No. 6 ranked Fighting Ducks took a page out of their youth tournament hoops playbook, getting up early and notching a 58-48 come-from-behind victory over No. 11 Lake Roosevelt.

“A 9 a.m. basketball game. When was the last time this team played at 9 a.m.?” asked TL head coach Daren Dean.

They didn’t have the early bird game at any holiday tournaments this season. And they didn’t get the Morning Dew game during their summer league slate, either. But it wasn’t necessarily the time on the clock that had the Ducks out of whack early on. Coach Dean believes it was more likely a bout of nerves that comes along with reaching the big stage at the final site on the postseason docket.

“In the arena there’s always a little bit of that,” Coach Dean said.

— Content below this line is reserved for paid subscribers. Thank you for helping sustain Blast Zone Media. We depend on your support in order to continue reporting on local athletics. Consider showing your support today. —

Read more

BlastZoneMedia.com / blastzonenews@gmail.com

2B Prep Boys Basketball / Report

The Toledo boys basketball team had a chance for vengeance and victory in the Regional round of the 2B State Tournament, but instead had to settle for a larger chip on its shoulder following a 64-63 loss to Tri-Cities Prep last Saturday at Tumwater High School.

The contest between the No. 4 Riverhawks and the No. 5 Jaguars was a rematch of the football State championship game at Husky Stadium in December, with a similarly gut wrenching finish. It was certainly not the retort Toledo was hoping for, but with at least one more game on the schedule this season the Cheese Town gang is doing its best to keep a level perspective.

“It makes me feel good about the seeding committee. When you look at the rankings, that should be a good game,” Toledo head coach Grady Fallon said. “We had our chances to win it against a good team so we can walk away with our heads held high.”

— Content below this line is reserved for paid subscribers. Thank you for helping sustain Blast Zone Media. We depend on your support in order to continue reporting on local athletics. Consider showing your support today. —

Read more

BlastZoneMedia.com / blastzonenews@gmail.com

2B Prep Boys Basketball / Report

The Ilwaco boys basketball team had a hard time getting into gear at the starting line and wound up paying the price.

The No. 13 Fishermen, champions of the Pacific 2B League, suffered a season-ending 68-54 loss to No. 12 Burbank (Columbia) on Saturday in the Regional round of the 2B State Tournament at Richland High School.

“We hadn’t seen many matchup zones this season and Burbank did a good job in theirs to make us have to slow things down a bit,” Ilwaco head coach Eric McMillan said. “The boys were able to work for some good looks, just didn’t make as many as we needed to and adding in some costly turnovers really hurt.”

McMillan was named Coach of the Year by his peers in the P2BL, but somehow the Fishermen landed just two first team selections despite running the table in league play in the midst of a 16-game win streak.

But those snubs paled in comparison to the disappointment of finishing one game short of a trip to the final site at Spokane Arena.

— Content below this line is reserved for paid subscribers. Thank you for helping sustain Blast Zone Media. We depend on your support in order to continue reporting on local athletics. Consider showing your support today. —

Read more