SPOKANE — A season that was dubbed the “redemption year” for the Rainier Mountaineers ended just the same as the campaign they were aiming to redeem themselves from.
The top-seeded Mountaineers blew a 12-point second-half lead and fell to ninth seed Mabton 64-59 in the Round of 12 Wednesday, March 5, marking their second consecutive loss in the Round of 12. In both contests, the Mountaineers were the higher seed.
Rainier, which won the 2B District 4 title just 11 days ago, struggled to find an identity without senior point guard Brooklynn Swenson, who suffered a season-ending injury in the waning moments of the district finale, in its two state games.
“It’s been an emotional two weeks for us, to go from winning the district championship to having the letdown with Brooklynn getting hurt and the letdown of losing the regional game and trying to find out what we look like without Brooklynn,” Rainier head coach Brandon Eygabroad said.
Rainier had a clear height advantage over Mabton, as the Mountaineers’ tallest player was five inches taller than that of the Vikings. They capitalized on that factor early as Janess Blackburn and Lexi Beckman got to work in the paint, while Angelica Askey and Jazzlyn Shumate found their mark from downtown.
Rainier, leading 17-13 heading into the second quarter, pulled in front by double digits thanks to a pair of triples by Askey. Bryn Beckman, who had a miserable regional round game shooting the ball, knocked down a 3-pointer to aid the Mountaineers to a 33-23 halftime lead.
The Mountaineers took their biggest edge of the night at the midway point of the third quarter thanks to an Askey jumper to make it 43-31, but the Vikings ramped up the defensive pressure to attempt to get themselves back into the game.
Trailing 48-42 to start the fourth, the Vikings scored the first four points of the final frame to draw within two and bring the crowd back into the game. Blackburn and Bryn Beckman gave Rainier some breathing room with back-to-back buckets.
Alana Zavala shifted the momentum heavily in Mabton’s favor as she stole the ball and fought through contact for an and-one layup. Her free throw cut the margin to one point before Lexi Beckman’s and-one bucket pushed the lead back to four.
Mabton tied the game at 57 apiece with just under two minutes left on a Keirrah Roettger jumper. Esmeralda Sanchez, who struggled from the field all night, came up clutch with the go-ahead 3-pointer with 71 seconds remaining. Rainier could not advance the ball past halfcourt because of the Vikings’ pressure, leading to a handful of fourth-quarter turnovers in clutch moments.
“We got a little tight. Our youth showed at times. The press really bothered us, and it took us out of our rhythm,” Eygabroad said.
Mabton did not allow a field goal for the final two minutes and held off the Mountaineers for a 64-59 victory, despite losing the rebound battle 36-20. Blackburn led Rainier with 16 points and seven rebounds in her final game.
Rainier finishes the season with a 20-4 mark as Askey, Bryn Beckman, Blackburn and Swenson depart from the program, leaving behind a legacy that includes four straight state trips and a district title.
“When I started, they were sixth graders, and I knew they would be special then,” Eygabroad said of his senior group. “They set a tone where winning is an expectation and getting to state is an expectation, and that legacy will be left behind. Each one of those girls will be successful in life. They know how to handle adversity. They know how to be committed to something bigger than themselves.”
