Glacier Peak girls crowned 4A district champions

EVERETT — There’s no question that the Glacier Peak girls basketball team has been dominant this season.

After losing their first game of the season, the Grizzlies haven’t lost since. Their 60-41 win over Lake Stevens on Thursday in the 4A District 1 championship game at Everett Community College was their 21st consecutive victory.

They’re fourth in the final Washington Interscholastic Activities Association RPI rankings, which means they’ll advance to the Hardwood Classic regardless of the outcome of their state regional contest, to be played next weekend.

“I’m so excited for our seniors,” Glacier Peak coach Brian Hill said. “It’s a relief that we made it to the Tacoma Dome; this was everybody’s goal. Now our sights are set higher.”

The Grizzlies have beaten some good teams, including the Vikings, ranked 10th in the RPI; Snohomish, which has already clinched a spot in the 3A Hardwood Classic; and Wesco 3A champion Lynnwood, which has clinched a berth to the 3A state regional round. Glacier Peak’s only loss came to Stanwood, which ranked fifth in the 3A RPI and can secure a spot in the 3A Hardwood Classic with a win over Shorewood on Saturday.

The Grizzlies have averaged 70 points per game, best in the state among 4A teams. In their 21 wins, they’ve outscored their opponents by an average of 29 points per contest.

“We have a lot of weapons on offense,” said Glacier Peak point guard Samantha Fatkin, who posted 20 points, five rebounds, six assists and two steals Thursday. “We work well together, and there’s a lot of positive energy — we celebrate each other’s successes. And there’s no drop-off no matter who’s on the floor.”

All of these facts and figures don’t guarantee the Grizzlies success at the Tacoma Dome, of course. But Glacier Peak is confident that it can continue to win, even against some of the state’s best squads, if it plays like it’s been playing.

“I think we do (have a chance to win state-tournament games),” Fatkin said. “We just have to stay humble, keep our eyes on the prize, play team basketball and not let other teams get in the way of what we’re trying to do. If we can do that, we’ll be fine.”

“Now that the playoffs are here, we’re not holding back,” said Grizzlies guard Paisley Johnson, who scored 23 points Thursday. “We’re not going to be a nice team anymore. We’re going to play our game.”

Glacier Peak outscored Lake Stevens 20-6 in the second quarter to open a 35-18 halftime lead. The Vikings put together a nice run to cut their deficit to five with two minutes remaining in the third quarter, but the Grizzlies went on an 11-0 run, capped by back-to-back 3-pointers from Johnson and Fatkin at the start of the fourth quarter to effectively put the game away.

“Our goal was to get the deficit down to single digits at the start of the fourth quarter, because (Glacier Peak) hasn’t seen that type of pressure,” Lake Stevens coach Randy Edens said. “We were executing well and were in a good position, but the 3-pointers from Fatkin and Johnson were tough to overcome.”

The Vikings still have a chance to advance to the state regional round. Lake Stevens plays Kamiak on Saturday at EvCC, and if the Vikings win that game, their season continues.

Lake Stevens has defeated the Knights three times this season. One of those wins came last week in a district-tournament game.

“That’s the toughest part,” Edens said. “I’ve been part of situations when teams have beaten us two or three times, but the game at the end is what matters most, and I’m sure that will be (Kamiak’s) mentality. We’ll rest up and be ready to go for Saturday.”

The Grizzlies’ immense success might be overshadowing what a good season the Vikings have had so far. Of Lake Stevens’ four losses, three have come to Glacier Peak, and the other one was to Stanwood.

But the Vikings just weren’t able to give the Grizzlies a game. In their three contests, Glacier Peak outscored Lake Stevens by a combined 52 points.

“Kudos to them,” Edens said. “They’re a great team.”