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Written by: Gary Jones and Glenn Jones
By Gary Jones and Glenn Jones
Before I list the awards, let me explain something that has come up in the comments before. Glenn and I sit at the Idaho Center for the entire state tourney. On Thursday and Friday, we watch the 5A teams, and then on Super Saturday we watch the six state title games. These awards are only based on the teams we see at the Idaho Center. There may be an awesome pep club, for instance, that did a great job but never made it to the Idaho Center. Since we never saw them, they could not be listed on this awards page. Some people don’t like the fact some teams or players are excluded, but our purpose for doing these awards is to give some teams and players some recognition and we can only recognize the teams and players we see. So, with that said, here goes……
5A State Champs: Coeur d’ Alene Vikings (23-2) 57-48
This game featured arguably the best two 5A teams in the state. Rocky Mtn was going for their first title ever with their coach, Emery Roy, going for his 10th! The perennially good Vikings were going for their 9th title and the 4th for their coach, Dale Poffenroth. The Vikes were also playing in their 8th title game out of the last nine years. Incredible. With their win, the Vikings are now tied with Prairie for the most girls’ titles with 9.
Runner-up: Rocky Mtn Grizzlies
3rd Place: Mtn View Mavericks
Consolation: Hillcrest Knights
Sportsmanship: Rocky Mtn Grizzlies
Academic: Boise Braves 3.859 GPA
4A State Champs: Skyview Hawks (25-1) 69-55
Both of these schools were chasing their first championship ever in girls’ basketball, and once again the top two teams in the state faced off for all the marbles. The Hawks now have their first ring, as does their coach, Cindy Pasta. The only blemish on their near perfect record was an opening season loss to an excellent Rocky Mtn Grizzlies squad. There’s no arguing the fact that the Hawks are the best 4A team in the gem state.
Runner-up: Twin Falls Bruins
3rd Place: Pocatello Indians
Consolation: Nampa Bulldogs
Sportsmanship: Twin Falls Bruins
Academic: Jerome Tigers 3.827 GPA
3A State Champs: Filer Wildcats (23-3) 44-36
Neither Filer nor Timberlake had ever won a girls’ title before. Filer was the #2 team in the state in the media polls, but Timberlake wasn’t even in the top five. Coach Kody Ketterling can now give Jostens a call and get the rings ordered for his talented girls. Talk about moving up the ladder……In 2011, Filer made the tourney and was two and out. In 2012, they won the consolation trophy. Last year, they lost in the championship game to Snake River. Their continual rise to the top is now complete.
Runner-up: Timberlake Tigers
3rd Place: Homedale Trojans
Consolation: Sugar-Salem Diggers
Sportsmanship: Fruitland Grizzlies
Academic: Fruitland Grizzlies 3.803 GPA
2A State Champs: Firth Cougars (21-5) 45-36
According to the media polls, this was a matchup between the #1 Bulldogs and the #3 Cougars. Firth had one previous title in 1987 with Coach Diana Pearson, while Ririe was looking for their first. I remember seeing a T-shirt worn by a Firth student a few years ago that read: “Where if Firth? Right ahead of second.” It’s time to reprint them and have a fund raiser!
Runner-up: Ririe Bulldogs
3rd Place: Melba Mustangs
Consolation: Grangeville Bulldogs
Sportsmanship: Valley Vikings
Academic: Soda Springs Cardinals 3.800 GPA
1A Div 1 State Champs: Prairie Pirates (21-4) 56-40
This title game featured two teams who know each other very well. They had played three times with Lapwai winning twice. However, game four was for the ring. Lapwai was going for their 7th title and Coach Shawn Spencer was going for his fifth. Prairie was going for history: the most titles in girls’ basketball. Coach Lori Mader now has her first championship.
Runner-up: Lapwai Wildcats
3rd Place: Grace Grizzlies
Consolation: Challis Vikings
Sportsmanship: Prairie Pirates
Academic: Butte County Pirates 3.764 GPA
1A Div 2 State Champs: Dietrich Blue Devils (20-5) 31-26
Mackay was going for their first title, while the Blue Devils have four- the last three in a row under Coach Acey Shaw, and one back in 1999 under Acey’s Uncle Gene Shaw. Only one other team had four in a row in girls’ basketball: the Meridian Warriors under Emery Roy. Dietrich now shares that distinction with the Warriors and will try and set history next year with 5 in a row.
Runner-up: Mackay Miners
3rd Place: Rockland Bulldogs
Consolation: Nezperce Indians
Sportsmanship: Lighthouse Christian Lions
Academic: Nezperce Indians 3.883 GPA
The Idahosports.com Players of the State Championship Games:
5A: SydneyWilliams (Senior), Coeur d’ Alene Vikings: She led her team in scoring with 23 points on 9/15 shooting. She was 5/7 from the foul line. She had 5 offensive, 2 defensive rebounds, 4 assists, 6 steals, and only 1 turnover.
4A: Leah Bonner (Senior), Skyview Hawks : She had 27 points on 9/16 from the field and 9/14 from the free throw line. She dominated the defensive boards with 13. She also had 4 assists, 1 block, and 1 steal.
3A: Sydney Koyle (Junior), Filer Wildcats: She finished the title game with 13 points on 5/10 shooting from the field and 3/7 from the charity stripe. She also had 1 rebound
2A: Bailey Nelson (Junior), Firth Cougars: She ended up with 14 points on 5/16 from the field and 4/6 from the foul line. She also had 5 offensive and 2 defensive rebounds, 1 block and 2 steals.
1A Div 1: Kyndahl Ulmer (Senior), Prairie Pirates: She scored 17 points on 4/15 from the field and 9/10 from the free throw line. She also had 9 offensive rebounds, 5 defensive boards, and 2 steals.
1A Div 2: Katee Hubert (Sophomore), Dietrich Blue Devils: She scored 13 points on 5/16 from the field and 4/6 from the foul line. Her other stats: 5 offensive boards, 2 defensive rebounds, 1 block, and 2 steals.
The Idahosports.com All State Tournament Team (5A Only)
One requirement we have- we will pick at least one player from each of the 8 teams at state for this all state team.
First Team:
Destiny Slocum (Sophomore) Mtn ViewMavericks
Maren Herrud (Junior) Highland Rams
Megan Hochstein (Senior) Rocky Mtn Grizzlies
Brittany Tackett (Senior) Coeur d’ Alene Vikings
Makell Skidmore (Junior) Hillcrest Knights
Second Team:
Lindsay Cook (Sophomore) Hillcrest Knights
Madison Sumner (Senior) Coeur d’ Alene Vikings
Emilee Schlader (Junior) Lewiston Bengals
Isabelle Hadden (Sophomore) Boise Braves
Delaney Sauer (Senior) Capital Eagles
Honorable Mention
Noelle Aragon (Senior) Rocky Mtn Grizzlies
Kayla Anderson (Freshman) Mtn View Mavericks
Lynzee Wilson (Junior) Lewiston Bengals
Khadija Neumeyer (Senior) Capital Eagles
Carson Pickett (Senior) Rocky Mtn Grizzlies
MVP
Sydney Williams (Senior) Coeur d’ Alene Vikings: Sydney was a dominant force inside for the Vikings throughout the tourney. Her tourney stats were impressive: 62 total points, 18 rebounds, 3 steals, 9/13 from the charity stripe, 10 assists, only 3 turnovers, and just to show that guards aren’t the only players that can score from behind the 3 point arc, she was a perfect 3/3 on three pointers. Congrads on a superb performance in the big dance, Miss Williams. We have but one question: where will you be playing ball next year?
The Idahosports.com “Coolest Names” of the Tournament
You can find out how many people in the U.S. have your name by clicking here. There are lots of people named Gary Jones, but these cool names in the tourney are unique and that’s what we like about them. We have come up with a new category besides “Coolest Names”. We have now added “Awesome Alliterations”
“Coolest”
First Team
Destiny Long (Senior) Homedale Trojans
Hope Major (Senior) Genessee Bulldogs
Iridian Guillen (Senior) Notus Pirates
Aspen O’Brien (Sophomore) Rockland Bulldogs
Cherish Arthur (Freshmen) Lapwai Wildcats
Second Team
Haddi Williams (Freshmen) Ririe Bulldogs
Ivy Goff (Junior) & Jetta Goff (Freshmen)
Ta’Lee Rose (Junior) Sugar-Salem Diggers
Terrika Nelson (Junior) Middleton Vikings
Sakota Hall (Sophomore) Rimrock Raiders
Honorable Mention
Rayla Lohman (Senior) Lewiston Bengals
Lakota Robinson (Freshmen) Highland Rams
Noelle Aragon (Senior) Rocky Mtn Grizzlies
Lagi Church (Sophomore) Skyview Hawks
Brynlee Wells (Junior) Filer Wildcats
“Awesome Alliterations”
First Team
Brittany Brady (Freshmen) Grace Grizzlies
Jacee Jensen (Junior) Firth Cougars
Megan Mason (Junior) Teton Redskins
Randi Romans (Sophomore) Melba Mustangs
Lily Luckey (Junior) Priest River Lamanna Spartans
Second Team
Abby Allen (Sophomore) Sugar-Salem Diggers
Marlee Markus (Senior) Skyview Hawks
Victoria Villa (Junior) Burley Bobcats
Sarah Seubert (Sophomore) Prairie Pirates
Hollie Heinen (Sophomore) Kendrick Tigers
Honorable Mention
Sierra Schmeckpeper (Sophomore) Council Lumberjacks
Maria Mosman (Sophomore) Nez Perce Indians
Hillary Hollon (Senior) Tri-Valley Titans
Hannah Hatch (Senior) Hillcrest Knights
Brylie Bair (Senior) Snake River Panthers
Idahosports.com Pep Club of the State Tournament:
What we look for in pep clubs are these traits: Turnout, wearing school colors, energy, cheering, mascots, the kind of characteristics one sees in good ones. These pep sections stood out to us: Ririe, Filer, and Rocky Mtn. Despite the purple camo pants I just loved in the Rocky Mtn section, this year’s award goes to the Ririe Bulldogs. For a small town, they filled up the bleachers. They all had royal blue and yellow on, and they had the cutest bulldog mascot one could ask for. It’s still amazing to me that the smaller schools can have much larger pep crowds than many of the 5A schools that don’t have to drive very far. Small town pride is alive and well at the state tourneys. Congrads, Bulldog fans, keep up the good work!
The Idahosports.com Mascots of the Tournament:
We just love it when schools purchase a mascot and dress them up for games. Not enough schools do this. We only saw three at the Ford Idaho Center: Ririe, Mtn View, and Skyview. All three did a fantastic job, but the winner this year is the Hawk from Skyview. I don’t remember ever seeing one before from Skyview. The student inside the bird suit was Marcus Duce. Well done, Marcus!
States That Shouted Us Out:
Before I list the states that shouted us out, I’d like to comment on our shout out feature. It is a marvelous tool we use for many things. If we want to ask a question about a school, we can get an immediate answer. For example, I asked how the Dietrich Blue Devils got their mascot name. A viewer quickly answered that it came from a group of fighting men from World War I. It also allows listeners to acknowledge a player, cheerleader, coach, mascot etc.
Unfortunately, it also allows knuckleheads to try and sabotage our broadcasts. They will use fake names that have horrible connotations. In the second Coeur d’ Alene game, they made me mispronounce Madison Sumner’s name for a short period of time. We received 4 or 5 shout outs saying we were not saying her name correctly. It didn’t seem right, and fortunately, a secretary from CDA, Judy, straightened us out and we went back to her correct name. For you boneheads trying to have “fun”, you have no clue about life. How would you like it if you made it to state and your name was being butchered? Or worse, what if your son or daughter’s name was being mispronounced? It will be wrong on the CD/DVD for eternity, but you don’t care. That’s very typical of a person who would rather act like a middle school kid, and who just doesn’t care what harm he brings to others. If we keep having problems, it’s a great feature we may have to discontinue. Like the old saying goes, one rotten apple spoils the bunch.
I made a point to find Dale Poffenroth after the game and apologize to him. I asked him if I could talk to Madison about it because I wanted to explain it to her. She came up to our booth and was great about it. It was not surprising to me because a winner like her won’t let adolescent losers bother her. We will be much more selective and careful in the future, and I hope this trend doesn’t continue, or we will drop this feature altogether. I would like to personally thank Madison and Coach Poffenroth for their understanding and their positive attitude.
Here are the States and Countries that shouted us out: Idaho, California, Missouri, Arkansas, Utah, Texas, Oregon, Kansas, Montana, Colorado, New Mexico, Wisconsin, Canada, and Taiwan.
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