MOUNT VERNON — The Adna Pirates clearly don’t put much stock in state rankings.
Eight days after knocking off fourth-ranked Toutle Lake to earn their first state-tournament berth in 25 years, the Pirates pulled off an even bigger upset Friday night, toppling No. 1-ranked Darrington
43-30 in the Class 2B girls state regional at Mount Vernon High School.
The victory sends Adna (18-7) to next week’s 2B quarterfinals in Spokane. Darrington (21-2) plays North Beach, a 72-23 winner over La Conner on Friday afternoon, at 1 p.m. today in Mount Vernon for the region’s second quarterfinal berth.
“It’s one of the best (three) games we’ve played all year,” Adna coach Jeff Beasley said. “When we can have a game like this in a deep playoff like this, it’s huge.”
Darrington, on the other hand, struggled much of the night, both with turnovers (20 for the game) and with its shooting touch from the floor. The Loggers shot just 24 percent from the field (12-for-50), including an uncharacteristic 0-for-12 from 3-point range.
“We just couldn’t get any shots to drop, any of us,” said Darrington senior post Hailey Wales, who led her team with 17 points.
Part of the problem was Adna’s constantly changing defense.
“They mixed up their defenses well,” Darrington coach Ben Bryson said. “They went man, they played zone and they mixed it up and kind of kept us off balance and made it tough for us.”
Adna built a 17-14 halftime lead and never trailed the rest of the game. The Pirates were able to hold off the Loggers in part because of their outside shooting. Although they made just 30 percent from 3-point range (7-for-23), each trey seemed to come at precisely the right moment.
“Every time it seemed like (momentum) was going to swing,” Bryson said, “they would hit that outside shot and it would really take the heart out of us.”
The scrappy Pirates, whose tallest player stood 5-foot-8, also fought the taller Loggers — 5-10, 5-10 and 6-1 across the front line — to a virtual draw on the boards. Darrington out-rebounded the Pirates just 41-38.
“I always want the kids to beat (other teams) in the rebounding edge, but in my own heart I knew we probably wouldn’t beat Darrington because they are so big,” Beasley said.
Taylor Hoke, a 5-foot-4 senior guard, led Adna with 17 points, including four of her team’s 3-point field goals. Taylor Woods added 12 and made a pair of clutch 3-pointers in the second half.
Wales scored nine of her 17 points in the first half to keep Darrington close, but she didn’t get much help. No other Logger finished the game with more than five points.
“In the last two or three games we just aren’t scoring,” Bryson said.
A 22-9 third quarter, during which Adna hit a trio of 3-pointers, gave the Pirates a 39-23 lead heading into the final period.
Darrington tightened its defense, holding Adna to just four points in the final period, but the offensive woes continued as the Loggers managed just seven points themselves.
The loss ended Darrington’s 20-game win streak.
So, can the Loggers, whose only other loss this season was to a Class 3A school, bounce back?
“There is no reason why we can’t,” Wales said. “We are a pretty good team and we all want it really bad.”
At Mt. Vernon H.S.
Adna 6 11 22 4 — 43
Darrington 8 6 9 7 — 30
Adna—Beasley 4, Mabry 0, Sandrini 6, Hoke 17, Ivie 0, VonBargen 0, Bond 0, Diaz De Leon 0, Grosshans 4, Woods 12. Darrington—H. Wales 17, C. Cousins 0, R. Wales 5, Baker 0, Miles 0, R. Cousins 1, Franke 0, Jones 2, Brooks 5. 3-point goals—Hoke 4, Woods 2, Sandrini 1. Records—Adna 18-7 overall. Darrington 21-2.
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