The Banks girls basketball team had its best season in 13 years – finishing third in the Cowapa League – but last Friday the Lady Braves looked up at the scoreboard and realized their dream season was over.
Seaside’s Anna Toyas hit two free throws after a loose-ball foul with 5.6 seconds to play, lifting the Seagulls to a 29-27 win over Banks in the final round of the Cowapa League playoffs.
With the win, Seaside (9-16) earned the league’s No. 3 seed for the 4A state playoffs, which began Tuesday. With the loss, Banks’ season ended just one win short of making the program’s first-ever state playoff appearance.
“It was entertaining to watch and frustrating to coach,” said Banks coach Tim Hardie. “They are young, it happens. It’s like I told the girls after the game – most of the girls were in tears -– what more can you ask for? You fought back hard.
“You shot 8-for-10 from the free-throw line. [Seaside] made 11-of-12. How do you beat that? It was an evenly matched game. I give them a ton of credit.”
Both team’s statistics were identical in multiple categories, including shots attempted, shots made, three-pointers attempted, three-pointers made and free throws attempted. The only statistic that was different was free throws made, and Toyas’ final two foul shots were the difference in the game – both on the scoreboard and in the stat book.
“That’s as close to a dead heat as you can get,” Hardie said. “And that’s the loudest [our] gym has been in a long time.”
Even Seaside had fans in attendance for last Tuesday’s league playoff game. A group of 34 students – mostly boys basketball players – made the trip for the game.
“The school paid for admission and the bus,” said Ian Hawksford, a Seaside student. “All we had to do was pay eight dollars.”
The Seaside fans rushed the court in celebration at the end of the game – a familiar ending for Hardie’s group. Before Friday, the Lady Braves (12-10) had lost four games by two points or less and seven games by four points or fewer.
“We’re right there,” Hardie said. “I shook [Seaside] coach Mike Jacobsen’s hand after the game, [and] he said, ‘Your girls have come a long way in just one year, Tim.’”
Hardie is proud of his team and points to the level of respect the team has earned in a few short months. Last season the Braves finished with an 8-13 record – only winning two league games – and missed the playoffs. This season they hosted a league playoff game.
“I think we brought, for the first time in a while, respect to our program,” Hardie said. “Our goal at the beginning of the season was to host a playoff game. Goal met. Banks girls basketball is back. We took the next step toward real respectability.”
The next goal is to win a home playoff game or perhaps skip the first round altogether.
“We lost on a three-pointer at Astoria and we lost to [Yamhill-Carlton] by one,” Hardie said. “It’s real easy to look back and think we could have finished the first round [of league play] 4-1 or 5-0. That gives us a first- or second-place finish and a place in the state playoffs.”
Hardie doesn’t dwell on those losses nor does he forget them. He looks at a roster that is returning seven players and four starters, plus a junior varsity team full of talent that won 15 games this season. He sees building blocks for the future.
Hardie isn’t looking too far forward, though. The team’s awards banquet is tentatively scheduled for next week, where the Lady Braves will recognize their three seniors – Kalin Morris, Megan Merritt and Tasha Lyda – and the other outstanding players of the past season. The team will also honor Cowapa All-League selections Abby Hardie – who won Defensive Player of the Year for her 4.9 steals per game – and Marla Gooding. Morris was an honorable mention selection.
“Having Morris and Merritt trading off in the middle was a real luxury,” Hardie said of his two senior post players. “They each had their moments when they played well. And they helped so much and did a great job of embracing the younger kids. They were two of the ones that were in tears after the game.”
Hardie said that because of his group of seniors, it felt like he was just coaching a team of 10 girls – there was never a battle about class rank.
“I don’t think they saw grade levels,” he said. “They came to every practice excited to play. If we had practice right now, they would be out there. They’d be having fun.
“It’s a fun-loving group. They played unselfishly. [They] always came out hard and ready to play. A great bunch to coach.
“I’m incredibly proud of these girls.”
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