By Pierre LaBossiere

Peninsula Daily News

PORT ANGELES — In the end, having to play a team for the third time — twice in two days — was too big of a hill for the Port Angeles basketball boys.

Coach Kasey Ulin remains proud of his team that won the Olympic League 2A Division championship and grabbed a No. 1 district seed by having to beat a highly ranked North Kitsap team twice.

After losing to Fife in their West Central District III 2A tournament opener, that put the Roughriders in the position of having to win two straight to make state. The Riders got by Sequim on Friday. It was the third time the Riders had to play the Wolves and they managed to win all three, though it wasn’t easy as the Wolves gave the Riders everything they could handle.

But, going up against a feisty Olympic team Saturday, the boys got behind early, had some foul trouble and couldn’t beat the Trojans three times out of three, losing 51-48. The loss ended the Roughriders’ season and sent the Trojans, who were a No. 4 seed out of the Olympic League 2A, to state.

For a team that had aspirations of placing at the state 2A Tournament, it was a crushing loss. Ulin said it still hurts two days after the loss, and expects it will hurt all week.

“It was so emotional that it came to such an abrupt end that we didn’t expect,” he said.

The Riders beat Olympic twice in league play, including a game early this season in which they won by 31 points. But they couldn’t pull off the difficult feat of beating a team three straight times for a second straight night.

“It’s always tough to have to beat a good team three times,” Ulin said.

Ulin still believes that the Riders have one of the best 2A teams in the state. It was simply playoff basketball and it happens to teams at all levels, including the NCAA tournament.

“Unfortunately, life like sports doesn’t go your way sometimes,” Ulin said. “We’re still in a bit of mourning.”

Still, it was a tough loss for an ambitious team that played 40 games this summer to prepare for the winter.

“This was a special group of high character kids. They were so committed to each other. They really elevated the program,” he said.

This was a senior-heavy Riders’ squad with Kyle Benedict, Liam Clark, Garrett Edwards, Gabe Long and Payton Schmidt all graduating.

Ulin said Benedict (who led the team in scoring) and Clark (who set school records for rebounds and blocks) are getting interest from college programs, while Edwards is getting interest for football and basketball. Ulin said bench player Long was very much the most versatile player on the team who could have started for most teams.

“It’s impossible to replace them. I was so fortunate to coach this unbelievable group,” he said.

Still, Ulin said the group set a standard for the program. He doesn’t see the Riders rebuilding, but simply retooling for next season.

After about a week of mourning, Ulin said he will begin plans for setting up the team’s summer schedule.

“We value these kids on and off the floor. And we value them for more than just performance. These kids are champions,” Ulin said.

Olympic 51, Port Angeles 48

PA 6 14 12 16 — 48

Oly. 16 20 14 13 — 51

Port Angeles (48) — Benedict 10, Johnson 9, Schmidt 9, Edwards 9, Long 5, Kathol 4, Clark 2.

Olympic (51) — Barron 16, Morgan 11, Brehmer 11, Hanson 6, McInnis 4, Nelson 2.