Arlington girls earn date with Bellevue after routing Kamiakin

So, nobody thinks the underdog can win, huh?

It doesn’t matter.

The Arlington girls think they can slay heavy favorite Bellevue on Saturday night in the Class 3A state championship game.

The No. 4 Eagles terrorized ninth grade-led Kamiakin with their fullcourt pressure, and ran away with a 44-30 victory in the state semifinals Friday night in the Tacoma Dome.

Arlington (25-1) and top-ranked Bellevue (28-0) will tip off for the 3A title at 9 p.m.

“We’ve been the underdogs for four years now,” Eagles guard Gracie Castandea said. “We’ll always have that chip on our shoulders. We like it. We use it to our advantage.”

Arlington lost to Mead in the Class 4A title game in 2013 after an unexpected run through the state tournament.

“Here we go, another opportunity to get a state championship,” Arlington coach Joe Marsh said.

After a big crowd thinned out after the Bellevue-Lynnwood blockbuster, the Eagles won in the same manner they have throughout the whole season with stifling, tiring defensive pressure. They forced 27 Kamiakin turnovers.

It all sets up Arlington’s run the other way as the ball rotates side-to-side – until an open 3-point shooter in located.

It wasn’t a great shooting night for the Eagles, who finished at 26.2 percent (17 of 65). But they finally put together a knockout scoring run at the end of the third quarter.

After Kamiakin (15-11) cut it to 30-17 on two Chanceler Williams’ free throws with 2:22 remaining, the Eagles answered with Gracie Castandea’s second-chance basket a minute later.

And after a Braves turnover, Arlington’s Sarah Shortt charged down the right block, banked in a shot and was fouled.

She missed the free throw, but the Eagles got the rebound – and Jayla Russ hit a short jumper to complete a four-point possession, giving the Eagles a 36-17 advantage with 48 seconds remaining.

So now on to Bellevue, which is led by Stanford signee Anna Wilson, the sister of Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson. She is the Wolverines’ point guard who can zig-zag through seemingly any defense.

“Listen, (pressing teams fullcourt) is what we do. There is no way you get to a state championship and try and change everything we do,” Marsh said. “There are some things we have to do differently – their length is going to be an issue.

“Anna Wilson is a great player – we know that. We’ve got depth. We’ve got little people who can get down there, so we are going to go out and work out.”

The Eagles have twice played Bellevue in the state playoffs. They are 0-2, losing 49-36 in 1999, and 62-45 a year later.

This story was originally published March 4, 2016 at 11:19 PM with the headline "Arlington girls earn date with Bellevue after routing Kamiakin."