For Wesco 3A girls basketball, strength is in the numbers

Published 1:30 am Monday, January 23, 2017

Wesco 3A girls basketball has been particularly strong in recent years, and this season certainly is no exception.

As of noon Monday, seven of the 12 Wesco 3A teams were in the top 25 of the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association’s new RPI rankings. (There are 65 Class 3A teams in the state.) Stanwood was ranked fifth, Snohomish ninth, Shorewood 11th, Lynnwood 15th, Edmonds-Woodway 17th, Shorecrest 24th and Marysville Getchell 25th.

The RPI formula — which factors in winning percentage (25 percent), opponents’ winning percentage (50 percent) and the winning percentage of opponents’ opponents (25 percent) — isn’t a perfect system. For instance, all out-of-state opponents are calculated as .500 teams, regardless of their actual winning percentage.

But still, the rankings shed light on the quality of Wesco 3A girls basketball.

“I think we have five of the top 12 teams (in 3A in the state),” Snohomish coach Ken Roberts said. “I don’t know that we have numbers 1, 2 or 3 this year, but I do think that we have five of the top 12.”

This season’s Wesco 3A includes three teams that advanced to state championship games last year and four teams that earned top-three finishes at state. Shorecrest, now a 3A school, won the 2A state title last season. Snohomish, which moved down to 3A this year, was the 4A state runner-up. Arlington advanced to the 3A state championship game. Lynnwood, after winning the 3A state title in 2015, went 26-1 last season en route to a third-place finish at state.

And then there was Edmonds-Woodway, which showcased Wesco 3A’s depth by placing sixth at state last season after going 6-6 in conference play and entering the district tournament as the No. 10 seed.

“You knew coming into this year, with the people coming back on the different teams, that it was going to be a real tough league,” Roberts said.

Highlighting that returning talent are several seniors who have committed to play college basketball. Shorewood star Taryn Shelley has signed with Washington State. Edmonds-Woodway’s Missy Peterson is heading to Long Beach State. Lynnwood’s Kaprice Boston is bound for Northern Arizona. And her Lynnwood teammate, Kelsey Rogers, has committed to Western Washington.

“It’s a college hotbed right now for recruiting,” Edmonds-Woodway coach Jon Rasmussen said.

Talented players and good coaching are the primary factors behind the strength of Wesco 3A, Stanwood coach Dennis Kloke said. “No. 1, I think you’ve got very, very good coaching,” he said. “And number two, you’ve got very, very talented young ladies.”

Stanwood has found that out the hard way.

Two weeks ago, the Spartans were the team to beat in Wesco 3A. They had rolled to a 12-0 start, winning by an average of 25.1 points per game while picking up impressive victories over Wesco 4A powers Glacier Peak and Lake Stevens.

Yet fast-forward to the present and Stanwood is in the midst of a three-game losing streak after falling to Shorewood, Lynnwood and Marysville Getchell. Kloke attributes some of his team’s recent struggles to poor shooting and opponents adjusting to the Spartans’ full-court pressure.

But Stanwood’s recent skid also is a testament to the quality and depth of the league.

“There’s seven upper-quality teams in the Wesco 3A,” Kloke said.

With five teams currently at two or fewer losses in conference play, the next two weeks should provide an exciting finish to the regular season. Not only is the conference title up for grabs, but so is district tournament seeding.

Depending on whether Ferndale and/or Squalicum qualify from the Northwest Conference, either eight or nine district berths are available for Wesco 3A. And if at least one of the two NWC teams qualify, then the district tournament would include single-elimination play-in games leading into the eight-team double-elimination format. That places extra importance on earning one of the higher seeds and the first-round bye that comes with it.

“There (could) be play-in games where good teams are sent home on the first night,” Rasmussen said.

In years past, either two or three teams advanced from district to the 16-team state tournament. A fourth state berth was added this season, which should make the district tournament even more intriguing.

“I think there’s probably up to eight teams that could fill the four spots,” Rasmussen said. “It’s going to be a real battle.”

“This could be the most exciting district (tournament) that we’ve had in a long time,” Kloke added.

With so many talented teams, coaches know anything can happen in the wild, wild Wesco 3A.

“Nobody’s going to be resting easy the night before they play a game at districts,” Roberts said. “That’s for sure.”