SPOKANE — Mossyrock has clinched its first state trophy since 2008 with a 46-12 win over league rival Naselle in the 1B state tournament consolation bracket Friday in Spokane.
The No. 6 Vikings avenged a district-semifinal loss to the No. 10 Comets as the two squads were playing for the fourth time this season — with Mossy winning three of the four.
But this time the stakes were even higher as the Vikings secured their highest finish since 2008, when they took third.
“It’s pretty exciting,” Mossyrock coach Autumn Moorcroft said. “These girls have put in the work the past three years and they really wanted to use this opportunity to bring home some hardware and put Mossyrock girls basketball back on the map.”
Now they’ll get a shot at either the fourth- or sixth-place trophy when they take on the winner of Wilbur-Creston-Keller/Pomeroy Saturday.
Even without starting post and second-leading scorer Hailey Brooks, who was out with a sickness, the Vikings would not be denied one day after a disappointing 40-35 loss to Garfield-Palouse that ended their state title hopes and sent them to the consolation bracket.
The Vikings hit just seven field goals in Thursday’s loss, but on Friday they were red-hot from the field.
The Vikings ripped off a 17-2 run to start the game, fueled by 10 first-quarter points by junior point guard Payton Torrey, to stun the Comets from the get-go. The Vikings increased their lead to 27-7 as Torrey led all scorers with 15 points at the half and finished with a game-high 25 on the day.
“It starts with defense,” Moorcroft said. “You get those early stops and some buckets and we set that momentum quickly in the game. Right off the bat.”
Mossyrock continued its offensive and defensive onslaughts in the second half, reeling off an 11-3 run between the third and fourth quarters. Caelyn Marshall caught fire with eight points in the second half to put Mossy up 38-10 midway through the fourth.
Torrey knocked down a 3-pointer to give Mossy a commanding, 44-12 lead with 1:30 to play as the Vikings pulled their starters and cruised the rest of the way to victory.
“I’m shocked,” Torrey said. “This was our goal from the beginning. With everything going on, it just feels so great that we’ve overcome so many things. Like even tonight, we were without a couple players who weren’t feeling good. So many people stepped up and it’s just great.”
Mossyrock now moves on to face the winner of Wilbur-Creston-Keller vs. Pomeroy in the fourth/sixth-place game at 9:30 a.m. Saturday.
