NAPAVINE — At the beginning of a season, it’s common for teams to come together and create a list of goals they hope to achieve.
The Napavine girls basketball team is no different, and the senior core — Hayden Kaut, Taylen Evander, Sophia Bittner, Clara Fay, and Hannah Fay — wanted to make sure to end their high school careers on a high note.
Those five and the Tigers checked the first two boxes off their list on Saturday, when they breezed past Toledo 69-39.
With the win, Napavine not only finishes the season unbeaten at home, but it also wins the C2BL title. It’s the second time in the last four seasons that the Tigers have finished league play undefeated.
After the game and postgame meeting, the five seniors shared a group hug outside of the locker room.
“Nothing’s more satisfying than to see a group of kids who’ve had to endure since their eighth grade year,” Napavine coach Shane Schutz said. “It hasn’t always been easy … We’ve accomplished something, and it’s been an incredible ride so far. They’re just enjoying the moment, and it makes me awfully proud of them.”
All five seniors scored in the win, with Kaut and Evander leading the way. The pair combined for 22 points in the first quarter, a frame where Napavine built a 17-point lead.
The TIgers continued to build on their lead throughout the rest of the game, eventually leading by as many as 34 points in the fourth.
Kaut finished with 24 points, including four three-pointers, and eight rebounds, while Evander added 20 points, five rebounds, and five assists. Nicholle Valentine scored six points and brought down 12 rebounds.
Ava Ondong, Aubrey Williams, and Clara Fay added four points each, and Ondong added seven rebounds of her own. Bittner and Alexis Schutz scored three points apiece, and Hannah Fay scored one.
Ryah Stanley led Toledo with 12 points and three rebounds, while Ellie Fallon added 10 points and five rebounds of her own. Sidney Kruger added six points, and Taysia Miller logged five. Kailea Lairson and Peyton Holter tallied two apiece, and both Grace Layton and Zaya Norberg scored one.
Toledo (11-5, 3-3 C2BL) will wrap up its regular season at home against Toutle Lake on Tuesday. The Riverhawks could finish as high as three or as low as five, depending on that result, the result of Toutle Lake and Onalaska’s meeting Saturday night, and the result of Onalaska’s finale against Mossyrock on Tuesday.
Napavine’s (16-4, 7-0 C2BL) path is set in stone. As the No. 1 seed from the C2BL, the Tigers will have a first-round bye before playing in a district quarterfinal on Tuesday, Feb. 10, against either the C2BL’s 5 or the P2BL’s 4. A win there would put them in the semifinals, where they would have two chances to seal a state spot.
“We go back to 0-0,” Shane Schutz said. “We got to get ready to do it all over again. We’re going to work for a week. We’re putting our hard hats on and we’re gonna bring our lunch pail, and hopefully that week, we’re gonna get even better. That’s our goal.”
