Colton's 4th straight title sets all-time mark for Bs

Almost like a sleek blue Midnight Express pulling into the station right on time, Colton’s girls finished off another three-win run in Spokane Saturday night to claim their fourth straight 1B title win and wrap up an undefeated season.

Coach Clark Vining’s crew kept right on track with unrelenting defense and sharp shooting.

They finished with a 55-47 win over a big Columbia of Hunters team in the last game of the three-day show. The Wildcats and the Lions took to the court in the last of four title games to wrap up the three-day all-B tournament show in the Spokane Arena.

Colton’s girls over the last four years have compiled a 100-3 record. Three seniors claim that mark, Erin Weber, Haley Moser and Grace Druffel. They were aboard when Colton pulled out of the station with its first title four years ago.

The Wildcats again did it with defense and tough shots coming at the right time to get the wins.

“Our defense was really the key over the course of the tournament,” Coach Clark Vining commented.

He noted one key stat was the 31 percent shooting mark Colton’s three opponents had at the end of the tourney show. That mark made the Wildcats’ shooting defense the stingiest in the tournament.

“We had different players step up at different times during the tournament. It always seemed like somebody came up with the right play at the right time,” he noted.

Colton went into the title game after a 47-40 battle with Almira-Coulee-Hartline. Columbia advanced to the title round with a 45-40 squeaker over Sunnyside Christian, the team which stopped SJE, the other SE contender, in last week’s regional round.

Columbia’s last trophy win was in 1986 when they rolled up a 29-2 record under Coach Roy Graffis who continued his winning ways from his stint at Oakesdale.

Colton stacked a 15-9 lead in the first quarter with Payton Meyer picking up a steal and going the length of the court for the final score of the quarter which closed out past the 10 o’clock hour.

One other key for the start of the game was a three-foul load picked up by Columbia’s Lindsay Loe on the inside. Loe, at 6-1, was one of the Lions’ top scorers during the year. She lost 10 minutes of playing time in the title game, but came back with a vengeance in the second half.

The first half closed at 35-19 with Jenna Moser dropping a 3-pointer from the corner.

Columbia, sparked by Loe’s return, cut three points off the Wildcat lead after the break, and the Lions continued to close in the fourth quarter, but never came within range to close the gap.

Senior Haley Moser finished out with 21 points with four from 3-point range.

The Wildcats hit more shots from outside of the three line than inside; 9 of their 16 field goal were from downtown. They also blistered at the toss line, hitting 14-16.

Colton’s toughest game at Spokane was booked Saturday when they survived a nail bitter against Almira-Coulee-Hartline, the team they faced in the title game last year.

The Warriors last year nipped Colton in the regional round, but bowed in the title game.

Friday, ACH posted an early lead with an offense which came close to matching Colton’s style. Coach Vining put Paige Vincent into the lineup to break up a solid front attack by the Warriors.

Vincent rapped the Warriors for three 3-point shots and pulled down a slew of rebounds. She scored all 13 of her points in the first half.

Colton had a 24-15 lead at the break, but the Warriors bounced back to within four points 38-42 with Kelsey Streeter hitting a 3-pointer with 2:34 left.

Colton’s defense showed its stuff as the clock ticked down when the Warriors failed to get off a shot after burning 30 second of possession time. ACH went into another possession countdown and managed a last tick desperation shot which missed.

Haley Moser hit three toss shots as the Warriors went to a foul mode to recover possession going down the stretch.

Final score for Colton’s semi win was 47-40.

Thursday, Colton started the run with a 58-36 win over the undefeated Neah Bay club. The Red Devils stayed close in the first half, but Colton turned up the heat in the last two quarters and advanced on a 58-36 win.

Sophomore Jenna Moser hit 15 against Neah and pulled down nine rebounds. Haley Moser hit 12 against the Red Devils.

The opener featured 46 total fouls, 24 by Neah and 22 by Colton.

The Wildcats’ run of four title wins marks a first for the state B division and ties a mark set by Colfax teams between 2004 and 2007 in the A division finals at Yakima’s SunDome.

Although Colton graduates three seniors who played a big part in the run, the Wildcats will have a lot of talent back on the court next year when they could make a run at bringing another trophy back to Colton station.

CHAMPIONSHIP GAME

Colton 55- Columbia Hunters 47: 15/9 20/10 11/13 9/15: Haley Moser 7 (4-3pt.) 3-4 21, Jenna Moser 4 (3-3pt.) 4-4 15, Paige Vincent 2 (3pt.) 4-4 9, Payton Meyer 2 1-2 5, Erin Weber 1 (3pt.) 2-2 5. Totals16-43 14-16 f-19 55. Columbia Hunters: Lidsay Loe 7 (3pt.) 6-7 21, Mackenzie Parrow 5 7-7 17, Krista Colvin 2 (3pt.) 0-0 5, Elizabeth Larrew 1 (3pt.) 1-2 4, Total 15-39 14-16 f-19 47.

FRIDAY SEMIFINAL

Colton 47- Almira/Coulee-Hartline 40: 10/6 14/9 13/18 10/7: Haley Moser 3 (3pt.) 6-7 13, Paige Vincent 5 (3-3pt.) 0-0 13, Jenna Moser 3 0-0 6, Grace Druffel 1 3-4 5, Kaitlin Druffel 2 (3pt.) 0-0 5, Erin Weber 2 (3pt.) 0-0 5. Total 16-52 9-11 f-13 40. ACH: Kodi Noggles 5 6-7 16, Kelsey Streeter 4 (4-3pt.) 0-0 12, Miranda Portefield 2 1-4 5, Madeline Isaak 1 2-2 4, Allison Fox 1 (3pt.) 0-0 3. Totals: 13-38 9-13 f-11 40.

THURSDAY

Colton 59- Neah Bay 36: 13/9 9/7 13/6 23/14: Jenna Moser 3 (2-3pt.) 7-8 15, Haley Moser 4 (3-3pt.) 1-2 12, Kaitlin Druffel 2 (2-3pt.) 2-4 8, Payton Meyer 2 1-5 5, Grace Druffel 0 5-8 5, Paige Vincent 2 1-2 5, Erin Weber 2 (3pt.) 0-0 5, RayLynn Smith 0 3-4 3. Totals 15-62 20-33 f-22. Neah Bay: Rebecca Thompson 2 (3pt.) 4-5 9, Cherish Moss 2 (2-3pt.) 2-5 8, Kaela Tyler 1 (3pt.) 3-4 6, Courtney Winck 1 3-4 5, Cierra Moss 2 (2-3pt.) 0-0 5, Faye Chartraw 1 1-2 3. Totals: 9-48 13-20 f-24.