From the Sidelines
The Bellevue sports blog
3A state tournament thoughts and predictions
March 8th, 2010 at Mon, 8th, 2010 at 3:06 pm by Joel WillitsNow that the boys and girls brackets are up for the 3A state tournament, we can take a closer look – and make some predictions.
First, some thoughts.
BOYS
Bellevue gets a tough draw. A winnable opening round game against Foster leads to a potential rematch with Enumclaw in the quarterfinal. The Hornets (24-0) are one of just three teams to beat Bellevue this year. If they do meet in the quarterfinals, it will be a lot like the Federal Way/Gonzaga Prep quarterfinal game in the 4A tournament – a game that looks like it should be the championship (that ironically, neither team won).
But what about the draw for Enumclaw? Talk about bad luck. You finish the season with a perfect record and your reward is a first-round matchup with Meadowdale (19-6) and possibly another showdown with Bellevue in the second round. Tough one for the Hornets.
One of the most intriguing first round matchups comes between Franklin (15-12) and Lakes (20-4). The Quakers are a great young team and Lakes has been strong all year. I’ve been flopping back and forth on which team I’ll pick to advance. Either way, I think Franklin comes back next year as one of the favorites to win it all.
Prediction
First Round
Glacier Peak (19-5) over Franklin Pierce (17-7)
Lakes (20-4) over Franklin (15-12)
Rainier Beach (22-3) over Bremerton (16-7)
Union (15-9) over North Central (15-11)
Enumclaw (24-0) over Meadowdale (19-6)
Bellevue (22-3) over Foster (16-8)
Shadle Park (20-4) over Renton (14-12)
O’Dea (20-7) over Mount Rainier (18-7)
Quarterfinals
Lakes over Glacier Peak
Rainier Beach over Union
Enumclaw over Bellevue
O’Dea over Shadle Park
Semifinals
Rainier Beach over Lakes
Enumclaw over O’Dea
Championship
Rainier Beach over Enumclaw
GIRLS
Not much to this one. All signs point to a Kennedy Catholic/Holy Names showdown in the championship game, with the teams ending up on the opposite side of the bracket. Without any local teams in the girls tournament, I’ll skip out on too much analysis here.
Prediction
First Round
Prarie (18-6) over Lynnwood (14-12)
Holy Names (22-2) over Yelm (18-7)
Shadle Park (16-9) over Capital (17-8)
Seattle Prep (16-9) over Bonney Lake (19-5)
Mercer Island (20-5) over Mount Rainier (18-6)
Kennedy Catholic (21-3) over East Valley (9-17)
Lakes (18-7) over Shorecrest (17-7)
White River (20-5) over Cleveland (18-7)
Quarterfinals
Holy Names over Prarie
Seattle Prep over Shadle Park
Kennedy Catholic over Mercer Island
White River over Lakes
Semifinals
Holy Names over Seattle Prep
Kennedy Catholic over White River
Championship
Holy Names over Kennedy Catholic
Joel Willits I'm the sports writer at the Bellevue Reporter newspaper. On this blog you'll find extra bits and pieces to stories I've written, observations on events in our area, and a behind the scenes look at what it takes to bring a story together. I'll field questions here, and maybe even ask a few too. I'm a 2007 graduate of the journalism program at Eastern Washington University. Prior to joining the Reporter, I worked at USA Hockey Magazine and did radio work with the Colorado Springs Sky Sox AAA baseball team. When I'm not busy covering the happenings in Bellevue, I enjoy playing hockey, watching sports and spending time with my family. You can also follow me on Twitter or you can send me an email.
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