Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
Sports Story of the Year:
Oakesdale girls react after beating Pomeroy in the state semifinal, March 6.
OAKESDALE - A lifelong point guard who was needed inside, brother and sister coaches, double-overtime survival in the first round, year two of a classic rivalry, a sequel to an unforgettable state volleyball finale, and, in the end, second and fourth-place finishes for the Oakesdale girls and boys basketball teams at Spokane Arena.
In six days, the Arena would shut down because of the spreading Covid-19. Oakesdale High School's basketball season made it just in time to be the county sports story of the year, 2020.
In a year with no spring high school sports and none in the fall, the winter was all there was. It had to count.
The Oakesdale girls, playing under first-year head coach Heidi Perry, began their season after a five-set, 15-13 in the fifth, volleyball state final loss to league rival Pomeroy, only to start new against the Pirates' real goal for 2019-20: Spokane in March. After losing to Colton in the state basketball final the previous two years, Pomeroy's sights were set for their turn.
But it all ended in the semifinals as Oakesdale senior point guard Lizzy Perry led the Nighthawks in a game decided by free-throw percentage: Oakesdale 15-for-16, Pomeroy 12-for-19. Oakesdale won 37-34.
The Nighthawks boys team got to the Arena byway of eclipsing rival Garfield/Palouse in overtime in Walla Walla for the district championship.
Subsequently dismissed in the regional round by eventual state champions Odessa, Oakesdale's win over Gar/Pal had already guaranteed them a berth to state.
Gar/Pal themselves made their second consecutive state appearance too, re-grouping after the 2020 district final to board the bus for the most thankless ride in Eastern Washington, back to Walla Walla the day after the district title game, having to get past Prescott in a snarly contest to stay alive in the postseason.
At Spokane, on day two and day three, it was Oakesdale. The girls stopped Pomeroy in the semifinals to meet Inchelium in the championship, and Carl Crider's boys team, early on the last morning, came back from a 32-18 halftime score to beat Almira-Coulee-Hartline and take fourth in state, a year after finishing sixth and losing four starters.
The one who carried over, senior Matt Hockett, went from a point guard to a force under the basket in 2020, scoring 70 points, with 33 rebounds across four games in the state tournament, named to the first-team 1B All-Tournament team, and selected as the WIAA/Wendy's State 1B Athlete of the Week.
Finally, in Spokane, at halftime of the girls final, honors were presented for the 1B academic state champions for girls and boys teams – both going to Oakesdale.
Garth Meyer is a former Whitman County Gazette reporter.
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