By Aaron Coe
Herald Writer
There was Ali-Frasier. Leonard-Hagler. The Tyson-Holyfield bite fight.
How about Stanwood-Snohomish III?
Friday’s district championship won’t determine which boys basketball team goes to state and which one stays home, but it will feature a battle of Western Conference heavyweights with big goals.
Though the Panthers and Spartans captured state berths with victories on Friday, the title game at Marysville-Pilchuck is a big deal.
Snohomish will have revenge on its mind. Stanwood is looking for the district title that eluded the Spartans last season.
“It’s nice to know that we’re going (to state), but we’re not letting up for anything,” Stanwood point guard Ryan Appleby said. “We want to win the district.”
Last year, Stanwood qualified for the state playoffs after 27 years of futility, but was dismantled in the district title game by Mount Vernon, 76-58. The Bulldogs went on to finish the season a perfect 27-0 after winning the Class 3A title.
Snohomish has a different sort of revenge on its mind. The Panthers had their chances in both games against Stanwood this year, but let the Spartans pull away late.
In the first meeting, the game was tied 11 times and was not decided until Stanwood’s Brad Bodfish hit a pair of free throws with 15 seconds left in the 83-76 victory.
The second game was postponed because of snow. The game proved to be worth the wait for fans, who saw Stanwood win a double-overtime thriller.
Stanwood coach Nate DuChesne, who played his prep basketball at Snohomish in the mid 1980s, said those games will mean little on Friday.
“It is very tough to beat a good team three times,” DuChesne said. “We’re just going to go out, have fun and keep trying to get better.”
How tall? The true height of basketball players can sometimes be a mystery. Sometimes 6 feet is really 5-foot-9 1/2.
Archbishop Murphy’s Lauren Coate is a hair over 5-11, and is listed as 5-11 on the team’s roster, according to Wildcats coach Bill Kelley.
“I should probably list her at 6 feet, but she wants to be listed at 5-11,” Kelley said. “I don’t think she’s 6 feet, but she’s taller than most people who are listed at 6.”
Still going: Lake Stevens wrestler Burke Barnes may have won his fourth state title recently at Mat Classic XIV, but his season is never over. The senior has been invited to compete in the Cliff Keen Wrestling U.S.A. Dream Team Classic on March 16 in Schofield, Wis. The event is a dual meet pitting the best from Wisconsin against the best from around the nation. Barnes will compete in the 130-pound division.
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