MOUNTLAKE TERRACE — The Neah Bay girls took the easier route while the Red Devil boys took the harder trail, but at the end both teams advanced to the Class 1B basketball Elite Eight state tournament.
The Red Devil girls ripped Columbia Adventist Academy 64-46 to punch their ticket to the Elite Eight as one of the top four seeds Friday night at Mountlake Terrace High School in the state regionals.
The boys, meanwhile, lost to undefeated powerhouse Mount Rainier Lutheran (24-0) in the regional first round Friday night at Mountlake Terrace High School but bounced back by ripping Northport 68-34 on Saturday night in a loser-out, winner- to-Elite-Eight game at Mountlake Terrace.
Both Red Devils teams now travel to the Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena to play in the 1B 2011 Hardwood Classic on Thursday through Saturday.
The tournament features the top eight teams in state with six of them placing.
The two teams play 12 hours apart in the first round Thursday.
The girls play the Saturday winner between St. John-Endicott and Colton at 9 a.m. while the boys play Rosalia at 9 p.m.
Thursday winners advance to the semifinals Friday.
Girls Basketball Neah Bay 64, Columbia 46
The Red Devils (23-1) are back in state for the fifth year in a row and back in the Elite Eight for the fourth straight year after putting on a clinic against Columbia Adventist of Battle Ground.
Neah Bay led 16-11 after one quarter and 41-24 at halftime and never looked back.
Cierra Moss led a balanced scoring attack with 13 points as four Red Devils scored in double figures.
Courtney Winck sank 12 points while Cherish Moss and Rebecca Thompson scored 11 each.
Olympic League offensive player of the year Cherish Moss also had six steals and six assists.
But Cherish Moss also helped Neah Bay dominate the boards as she grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds while Synon Allen had 12 and Winck collected 10.
Columbia Valley League all-conference junior Chianne Hendrix sank a game-high 21 points.
Sophomore Jaci Allison, another all-leaguer for the Kodiaks, who won the Columbia Valley League championship, added 14 points.
Neah Bay 64, Columbia Adven. 46
Columbia 11 13 7 15 — 46
Neah Bay 16 25 9 14 — 64
Individual Scoring
Columbia Adventist (46)
Wagner 1, Allison 14, Duncan 8, Watson 2, Hendrix 21.
Neah Bay (64)
Hahn 1, Thompson 11, Murner 7, Tyler 5, Winck 12, Cherish Moss 11, Cierra Moss 13, Allen 4.
Boys Basketball Neah Bay 68, Northport 34
The Red Devils (21-5) bounced back from Friday’s loss to dominate Northport.
They stormed out to a 16-8 lead in the first quarter and never looked back.
Leading 49-31 going into the fourth period, Neah Bay held Northport to three points in the final stanza to cruise to the win.
Drexler Doherty scorched the nets for 23 points while Eli Monette added 14.
Monette scored 17 on Friday night for 31 on the weekend.
Zeke Greene led on the boards with 10 rebounds, and he also had three assists and two steals.
Jimmy Jimmicum had eight boards.
Neah Bay 68, Northport 34
Northport 8 11 12 3 — 34
Neah Bay 16 13 20 19 — 68
Individual Scoring
Northport (34)
M. Johnson 4, LeCarire 4, Masters 2, Higgins 7, Marko 12, Konkler 3, P. Johnosn 2.
Neah Bay (68)
Debari 4, Smith 6, Jimmicum 6, Manuel 2, Greene 4, Doherty 23, Pascua 7, Monette 14, Kallappa 2.
Friday’s game Mount Rainier 62, Neah Bay 40
The perfect Mount Rainier Lutheran Hawks were too much for the Red Devils in the first round of the 1B regionals Friday night.
Neah Bay stayed close in the first half, trailing only 26-24 at halftime but the second half was a different story.
Mount Rainier’s superstar, Andrew Wolf, started the game slow but the Red Devils couldn’t contain him in the second half as the Hawks pulled away.
Wolf scored just four points in the first quarter, 10 in the second period but he ended up with 29 on the game, making 5 of 10 from beyond the 3-point arc.
The Hawks outscored the Red Devils 36-16 in the second half as Neah Bay was held to four points in the final quarter.
Eli Monette led the Red Devils with 17 points while Drexler Doherty sank 13.
Mt. Rainier 62, Neah Bay 40
Neah Bay 10 14 12 4 — 40
Mt. Rainier 8 18 21 15 — 62
Individual Scoring
Neah Bay (40)
Jimmicum 2, Manuel 2, Greene 4, Doherty 13, Monette 17, Kallappa 2.
Mount Rainier (62)
Greenwood 11, Shlatter 2, Newmiller 14, Perlisser 2, Wolf 29, Bagby 4.