YAKIMA – Seedings wise, the Wapato boys and girls were in for a couple white-knucklers Friday night at Davis High School in the regional round of the Class 1A state basketball tournament.

Instead, those knuckles delivered a couple early knockouts for the Wolves.

Wapato’s 12th-seeded boys pressed No. 13 Montesano into submission for a 63-38 victory.

And taking their cue from the boys, the Wolves girls, seeded 11th, raced past No. 14 Bear Creek 69-49.

Both teams earned spots in Wednesday’s opening round of the tournament in the Yakima Valley SunDome against to-be-determined opponents.

“The boys set a great example for us tonight, they really locked in defensively and it was fun to watch,” Wapato girls coach Shae Schimmel said. “I think our girls were excited for them and that energy kind of carried over to us.”

Unlike the regular-season doubleheaders in which the girls open, the Wolves boys squad tipped off the night Friday.

They were ready from the jump.

Wapato, which was fifth in the rugged SCAC before clawing its way to state out of district, smothered the Bulldogs. Well into the second half, Montesano had as many – or more – or more turnovers.

The Bulldogs finished with 31 turnovers, which fed the Wolves’ offense, including a couple breakaway dunks from senior T Fiander.

“We’ve been harping on it for three weeks, and making sure that we’re strictly about defense – the offense will come,” Wapato coach Adolfo Garza said.

The Wolves anticipated many of the Bulldogs passes, jumping in front of the intended target and taking it the other way like a ball-hawking football team.

“We have a couple guys who play football that are the safeties, and they read the ball very well,” Garza said. “I tell these guys, that in our press, you’re the safety, so you’re going to have to adjust.”

Jacob Bobb scored a game-high 20 points for Wapato (16-11), and AJ Garza and Fiander each had 16 points. Fiander also pulled down 14 rebounds.

“We were super excited, we were super pumped up,” Fiander said. “The past few games, we’ve really been coming together.”

The Wolves, who will make their first trip to the SunDome in 10 years, were greeted postgame by the girls team, which formed a tunnel to the boys locker room, and serenaded their counterparts with cheers.

When the girls took the floor, the results were much the same.

Bear Creek found little breathing room against Wolves’ press. 

No play epitomized that more than a blocked shot by Faith Kenoras in the second quarter. The Wapato senior spiked a 3-point attempt then recovered the ball and went in for a layup.

Kenoras finished with 16 points, 13 rebounds and four blocked shots.

“She had a big night – a block party,” Schimmel said. “She really sets the tone for us defensively, just her energy.”

Jordyn Bobb led the Wolves (21-5) with 18 points, and fellow sophomore Brook Alvarado had 14.

Wapato’s 11th seed raised a few eyebrows statewide. Some felt that the Wolves could’ve been given a protected top-eight seed.

Four of their losses came at the hands of No. 2 Zillah or fifth-seeded Royal.

“It’s out of your hands and all you can do is play the games you’re given, and hopefully play well,” Schimmel said. 

Bear Creek freshman Audrina Pannell scored a game-high 25 points for Bear Creek, which finished the season 12-12.