TACOMA — Forget, for a moment, what will be missing from today’s state championship game. Because the reality of what will be there is too tantalizing to be overshadowed.
When Prairie (27-0) meets Holy Names of Seattle (28-0), when the Class 3A girls title is decided in the Tacoma Dome, when the clichés such as “It’s a shame somebody has to lose” are broken out … one team is going to suffer its first defeat of the season.
That might be what you expect from a state championship. And yet it hasn’t happened in 28 years. Boys, girls, Class 4A, Class 3A — the last time two unbeatens met for a big-school title was when Auburn defeated Everett for the 1983 Class 4A girls crown.
Then again, breaking with precedent is nothing new for this Prairie team.
“They’re a team of destiny. I keep saying that,” coach Al Aldridge said Friday after a 54-41 win over Kamiakin of Kennewick in the semifinals. “They believe in each other.”
They must. Because the Basketball Gods seem to be conspiring against them.
The Falcons lost Heather Corral, their best player, to a torn ACL two weeks ago. They kept winning.
They watched Super Sub Cori Woodward go down with an ankle injury in the first half Friday and then pull a Willis Reed in the second half. They won again.
They saw starting post player Lanae Adams miss the second half of the semifinal with a knee injury. They didn’t miss a beat.
Prairie has suffered seemingly every kind of injury yet has managed to avoid the insult.
“We consider each other family,” sophomore starter Jackie Lanz said. “When somebody is down, the captains bring us together. It really is a family thing.”
Even the patriarch — The Godfather? — is limping around as Aldridge is suffering from a bad back.
And through it all, something magical is happening. Something that speaks to the team ethos of basketball.
The Falcons put a bunch of shooters and ball-handlers on the floor, attack from all angles, and play stifling defense despite a lack of size.
The result is a memorable season, regardless of what happens against Holy Names. The Cougars are led by Erika Johnson, who is bound for the University of California and is regarded as the best senior in the state. The Falcons are led by … pick a name from a hat.
“We’re a team of 10 good players — or 11 when we had Heather,” Aldridge said. “The other 10 have believed they can do it, too.”
Through it all, the specter of Corral looms large.
“Bless her heart, she did so much during the season to get us here,” Aldridge said. “She got us playing fast, she got the other kids believing.
“It’s just frustrating to get this far and not be at full strength. I’m sad for Heather, and I’m sad for our seniors who don’t get to be here at full strength.”
And still, perfection is within reach.
“We’ve dreamed of the perfect season,” Aldridge said. “In all my years here, we’ve never done that.”
Sounds like a tantalizing proposition.
Greg Jayne is Sports editor of The Columbian. He can be reached at 360-735-4531, or by e-mail at greg.jayne@columbian.com. To read his blog, go to columbian.com/weblogs/GregJayne
