By Karrington Kincaid, The Seattle Medium
The SeaKing District’s boys’ championship between the West Seattle Wildcats and the Eastside Catholic Crusaders was an electrifying match to begin the championship night. Both benches were going crazy for their respective teams in the hopes of winning the championship match and advancing to the next round. Head coaches from each side felt the pressure of this game, knowing that a win tonight would lock a spot for a state championship matchup.
Led by center Yabi Aklog, the Eastside Catholic Crusaders came out on fire. Aklog, along with Kayden Green, who knocked down two critical three-point shots during the period, and Jacob Cofie accounted for 17 of the Crusaders’ 21 first-quarter points. The Wildcats tried to keep the game close behind the three-point shooting of Alex Pierce and Jake Kriley, who accounted for half of the Wildcats’ 12 first-quarter points.
During the second quarter, the Crusaders increased their offensive intensity as Cofie connected on a trio of three-point shots, scoring 11 points during the quarter. Green contributed two three-point shots as Eastside Catholic scored 45 points in the half. Despite the dominating performance by the Crusaders, the Wildcats kept fighting as Alex Pierce and Nathan Schiavo continued to give their team some life. Pierce, who scored 6 points in the quarter, along with Schiavo, who made four free throws, helped pace West Seattle. The Wildcats would go into halftime down 18 points, 45-27.
As the game went into the second half, the Crusaders got even better and more efficient with scoring. It started off with guard Dash Lamebull-Ingram hitting a three-point shot to give the Crusaders early momentum. Cofie would follow up with seven points in the quarter. Greene also stayed consistent as he hit both a three-point shot and a two-pointer to give the Crusaders a 71-49 lead, despite the Wildcats scoring 22 points in the third quarter.
The resilience of West Seattle showed as Brittin Joyner, Bo Gionet, Nathan Schiavo, and Jake Kriley all contributed to the Wildcats’ fourth quarter point total. Sadly, that wasn’t enough to get them over the hump as the Crusaders’ dominance continued throughout the fourth quarter. Alex Elston, Nate Krohn, Jacob Cofie, Jordan Boggan-Cryer, and Kodi Green would all combine for 16 total fourth-quarter points, en route to an 87-62 victory.
Eastside Catholic’s Jacob Cofie expressed his excitement about his team winning the district title.
“Staying focused, we have to key in and focus on the small things as those things win championships, and defense wins championships,” said Cofie.
Eastside Crusaders Head Coach Brent Merritt had nothing but positive things to say about his team advancing to the next round in the playoffs.
“I’m excited about the win, but our job is not done,” said Merritt after the game. “We’re still thinking about the dome (the state championships at the Tacoma Dome). I’m glad my seniors got to go out and win another district title. Anytime you win a championship, you’re excited about it,” said Merritt.
The Crusaders await their next opponent as they advance to the state championship round that takes place this upcoming weekend.
