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Noah King hits go-ahead 3, Somers scores 26 to lift Lynden in rivalry classicBy Cameron Van Tilsports@lyndentribune.com

LYNDEN — With the two teams sporting a combined 28-1 record and Northwest Conference title implications at stake, there was even more excitement than usual surrounding this year’s edition of the storied Lynden vs. Lynden Christian basketball rivalry.

Remarkably, the game might have even ex-ceeded the hype. Lynden senior guard Noah King provided the signature moment of the instant-classic contest, swishing a 3-pointer with 32 seconds remaining to lift the 2A fourth-ranked Lions to a thrilling 71-68 win over 1A top-ranked and previously unbeat-en Lynden Christian on Thursday, Jan. 21., in front of an electric crowd packed into LC’s gym. “It was an incredible atmosphere,” King said. “It was something I’ve always dreamed of. I finally got my shot and I just made the most out of it.” The two rivals engaged in a fast-paced, high-caliber, back-and-forth contest that featured 21 lead changes, including nine in a dramatic fourth

quarter. As Lynden head coach Brian Roper put it, his team simply got the “last lead” — one that never felt safe until the final buzzer. “Lynden Christian’s had the magic (this) year with comeback wins,” Roper said. “I never felt safe. They’re a team that finds a way, but our guys showed some grit too. It was fun… Two evenly matched teams, great atmosphere.” With the victory, Lynden (14-1, 6-1 NWC) moved into a three-way tie with LC (15-1, 7-1) and Squalicum in the loss column atop the conference standings. The Lions have now beaten LC in 12 of the teams’ last 13 meetings.

Lions edge LC in thriller

Mount Baker junior ranks 14th in NWC with 13.9 points per gameBy Cameron Van Tilsports@lyndentribune.com

DEMING — Grant Balvanz had never played competi-tive basketball — or any sport, for that matter — prior to the eighth grade. One would certainly never know from his play today. Nor his stats. The Mount Baker junior is averaging 13.9 points per game this season, which ranks 14th in the Northwest Con-ference. A left-handed guard with a steady shooting stroke,

Balvanz has hit 47 3-pointers for an average of nearly three per game. His strong play has been an important factor in the success so far of the 1A No. 5-ranked Mountaineers, who are off to an 11-5 start and are closing in on securing the NWC 1A’s No. 2 seed. “He’s got one of those attitudes that every time he steps on the court, he’s going to put forth his best effort,” Mount Baker head coach Rob Gray said. “And that includes prac-tice, games, workouts and all that stuff. I think it’s really starting to pay off for him.” Balvanz has been homeschooled his entire life, as were his three older brothers. While they played plenty of sports

Lions rally from 16-point first-half deficit to beat LC in battle of NWC unbeatensBy Cameron Van Tilsports@lyndentribune.com

LYNDEN — Lynden senior guard Emily Holt describes the Lions as a “hard hat, lunch pail” type of team. No matter the situation, they just go to work. That blue-collar mentality was on full display as 2A No. 4-ranked Lyn-den clawed back from a 16-point first-half deficit for a stunning 55-45 rivalry win over 1A top-ranked Lynden Christian on Friday, Jan. 22, in a battle of the final two remaining Northwest Conference unbeatens. The win, Lynden’s 12 straight, puts the Lions in command of the confer-ence title race.

“We just keep chugging away,” Holt said. “I’m proud of our team for not getting discouraged tonight. We didn’t let our lack of offense in the first quar-ter dictate our defense.” It was a nightmare start to the annual rivalry game for Lynden (14-1, 7-0 NWC), which was held scoreless for the opening five minutes in front of a capacity crowd at LC. The Lions fell into an early 11-0 hole and deficits of 24-8 and 28-13 in the second quarter. But as dire as the situation was — a 16-point deficit on the road to one of the state’s elite teams — Lynden didn’t cave. In fact, quite the opposite. The Lions stifled LC the rest of the night, outscoring the Lyncs 42-17 to the finish. The rally centered on defense for Lynden, which climbed back into the contest by holding LC scoreless for the final four minutes of the first half. That allowed the Lions to close the half on a 7-0 run and cut the deficit to

’Catfight for Cancer’ raises nearly $6,000 LYNDEN — The second-annual Catfight for Cancer was another resounding success. The two-night promotion at last week’s Lynden-LC ri-valry basketball games raised just short of $6,000 for the PeaceHealth St. Joseph Can-cer Center, surpassing the goal of $5,000 for a second straight year. The Catfight for Can-cer uses the annual Lynden-LC boys and girls basketball games as a unified platform to recognize the impact cancer has had on the Lynden com-munity and raise money to fight it. This year’s fundraising consisted of a chicken dinner prior to the boys game and pink “Crush Cancer” T-shirts that were sold both nights. In addition to raising funds, honorary coaches — in-dividuals who have been im-pacted by cancer and have a connection to local basketball — were introduced in special pregame ceremonies. This year’s honorary coaches were: Jen Bode (Lyn-den boys team), KPUG’s Doug Lange (LC boys team), Tami Gonzalez (Lynden girls team) and WIAA executive director Mike Colbrese (LC girls).

Gonzalez, Bode shine with emotional performances Lynden juniors Mariah Gonzalez and Davis Bode, with their mothers watching from the bench as honorary coach-es, each put together a memo-rable performance in the Cat-fight games this year. Both mothers are fighting cancer. Gonzalez helped guide the Lynden girls team to a 55-45 comeback win over LC on Friday night with 10 points. She dug the Lions out of an early deficit by scoring her team’s first six points. During a timeout in the closing seconds of the fourth quarter, with the outcome all but decided, Gonzalez exited the game and shared a hug with her mother in front of a standing ovation from the crowd. “It meant the world to me,” Gonzalez said of her per-formance. “I just wanted to make my mom proud.” Added teammate Emily Holt: “I was so proud of her. I started crying at the end. It was such a special night for her.” A closer finish in the boys game on Thursday night didn’t allow Bode the luxury of a standing-ovation exit, but the Lynden center played worthy of one with a nine-point per-formance in the Lions’ 71-68 win over LC. Bode provided Lynden with a major boost by scoring the team’s first six points of the third quarter — all prior to the 6:30 mark — and finished the period with seven points.

Lynden senior Sterling Somers recorded 26 points and 10 rebounds to help carry the Lions to a 71-68 win over rival Lynden Christian on Thursday, Jan. 21. It was the Lyncs’ first loss of the season.(CameronVanTil/LyndenTribune)

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Lynden girls battle back, stun Lyncs

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Grant Balvanz drives for a shot.(CameronVanTil/LyndenTribune)

Balvanz travels unique path to success on the hardwood

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Wednesday, January 27, 2016 • lyndentribune.com • B3

together in the backyard while growing up, none of Balvanz’s three older brothers played competitively until high school. It wasn’t until two of his older brothers joined the Mount Baker baseball team that Balvanz, a sixth grader at the time, began con-sidering the idea of playing organized sports. In eighth grade, he started playing middle school basketball for the Mountaineers. That set the stage for his high school career. Balvanz spent his freshman season on the JV team, along with many of his current team-mates. After the graduation of that season’s large senior class, Balvanz and many of the others moved up to varsity last season. Balvanz thrived in his sophomore cam-paign, averaging 10.6 points per game as the second-leading scorer on a team that finished just one win shy of the regional round of the 1A state tournament. It was already a big step for a player in just his third season of organized basketball, but Balvanz only continued to make strides this past offseason — with an assist from a former Squalicum standout. One of Balvanz’s older brothers works with Derek Dickerson, a former 2A first-team all-state selection who led Squalicum to back-to-back state titles in 2009 and 2010. Further-more, Balvanz already knew Dickerson from

when he was younger. “I used to be a Squalicum fan before I had any ties to Baker,” Balvanz said, “and so I would go to all his games and sometimes be able to talk to him. My older brother suggested that I see if he would do some workouts with me each week, and (Dickerson) was complete-ly up for it.” So once per week this past fall, Dickerson would give Balvanz one-hour private train-ing sessions on the basketball court at Spring Creek Bible Church in Bellingham, where Bal-vanz’s father serves as a pastor. “It’s really impacted (my game) a lot,” Balvanz said of the training with Dickerson. “Transitioning from last year to this year, I’ve been able to see a lot of things that I’ve cleaned up in my game. Definitely a lot of credit for that goes to him.” A fellow left-handed shooter who holds school records at Squalicum for both single-season and career 3-pointers, Dickerson pro-vided a number of invaluable shooting drills and tips for Balvanz to work on during the countless offseason hours he spends honing his skills in the Spring Creek gym. Most notably, Dickerson helped Balvanz develop a quicker release. “Footwork is really key with having a quick release,” Balvanz said. “He helped me a whole lot with that — coaching me on having my feet ready to go before I even have the ball in my

hands and expecting the pass to be there. “With my shot, I’ve just seen a whole lot of improvement since last year.” Dickerson also worked with Balvanz on his ball handling. “I’ve become a lot more con-fident with my ball handling and I think also a lot of credit goes to him for that, too,” Bal-vanz said. “He did a lot of really challenging ball handling drills with me that really made me better.” Gray certainly notices the improvements Balvanz continues to make — and the work ethic that fuels those strides. “He just has a real passion for the game,” Gray said. “So each year, he’s worked a little bit harder on different facets of his game and he’s shown growth in all those areas.” Another key for Balvanz has been learning how to “slow down.” After what he described as a few rough games early in the season, Bal-vanz focused on letting the game come to him. “I was rushing it and trying to do too much,” Balvanz said. “I had to just slow down, let it come to me a little more and let my team-mates help me out, instead of me trying to do too much on my own.” His career-high 29-point performance in a Jan. 2 win over Sultan, during which he hit six 3-pointers, was a “breakthrough game” of sorts, Balvanz said. “That game, I didn’t try to do too much,” he said. “I didn’t even really take a whole lot

of shots. But the shots I did take were good shots.” Balvanz followed that performance less than two weeks later with 27 points and five 3-pointers in a Jan. 14 win over Burlington. Through 16 games, Balvanz has scored at least nine points in all but one contest and has hit multiple 3-pointers in all but four. His outside shooting prowess is especial-ly valuable for a team like the Mountaineers, who boast substantial height inside with 6-10 senior Timothy Soares (18.6 points per game) and 6-5 junior T.J. Bass. Their size down low helps free up space for Balvanz on the perim-eter, and vice versa. “It does make it, I believe, a challenge for teams to try to figure out how to defend our size,” Gray said, “as well as worrying about where Grant is too.” Balvanz’s rapid acclimation to the varsity level — and continued growth — has been integral to Mount Baker’s ascendance into a state tournament contender. And like Balvanz, the Mountaineers still may very well be on the rise. “It’s been fun being able to see what we can do together,” Balvanz said. “After building this chemistry the last couple years, it’s been a whole lot of fun to play with the same guys — to see our potential really come out each game and to see the continued improvement. It’s just been a blast.”

Baker girls wrestling wins tournament; Lions place fourth LAKEWOOD — The Mount Bak-er girls wrestling team won the Lady Lipstick Open on Saturday at Lakes High School. The Mountaineers had three individual champions, five finalists and 11 wrestlers who placed third or better in their weight classes. Natalie Smith (125 pounds), Taylor Van Brocklin (135) and Rachel Nichols (145) each won individual titles for Mount Baker. Korbyn Cadle (120) and Aneicea Camacho (155) each placed second.

Earning third-place finishes for the Mountaineers were Maria Tor-rero (100), Gabrielle Mata (105), Michelle Mata (110), Teagan Manzo (115), Shelby Sears (170) and Kimmi Swindon (235). Lynden, despite missing many of its wrestlers due to injury or ill-ness, placed fourth in the tourna-ment. Thalia Veliz (190) won an in-dividual title, Senaida Veliz (145) earned a third-place finish and Kar-ina Martinez (130) placed fifth.

Dual-match results    •  Mount Baker earned a 48-30 win over Burlington on Jan. 19.    •  Lynden  was  edged  by  Sedro-Woolley, 43-42, on Jan. 20.

28-20 heading into the break. At halftime, head coach Rob Ad-ams wrote on the whiteboard what has been a one-word catchphrase of sorts for Lynden this season: “Truth.” “I spun it around and said, ‘Here’s the truth. You just spotted the No. 1 team in the state an 11-0 run and you’re (only) down three possessions. If you do what we’ve been practicing, you’re going to get them,’” Adams said. “And I had to settle them down — they were jumping. They were like, ‘It’s the truth. If we just do what we’re ca-pable of, we have a chance.’” The Lions kept hanging around and remained on the edge of striking distance in the third quarter, trailing 35-27 with 3:20 left in the period. It was then that Lynden made its move, while LC went ice-cold. The Lions rattled off an 18-3 run and went nine minutes without allow-ing an LC field goal. “We pride ourselves in defense,” said Holt of a unit that has yielded just 38.1 points per game this season. “And if we hold our team to a certain num-ber and our defense is successful, then our points follow.” Holt sparked Lynden on the of-fensive end with three 3-pointers in in the final five minutes of the third quarter. The senior’s third 3 came on an unorthodox, desperation shot-clock-beating heave late in the quarter that cut it to 35-34 entering the fourth. “I heard my teammates counting down the shot clock and I chucked it up there,” Holt said with a laugh. “It was lucky.” Lynden then took its first lead of the night on a corner 3 by junior guard

Lauren Zwiers early in the fourth that gave the Lions a 37-35 edge. The Lions never trailed again. Junior guard Neria scored a pair of baskets — including a three-point play — on back-to-back possessions to extend Lynden’s lead to 44-38 with less than five minutes remaining. And after LC cut the deficit to 47-42 with 1:19 left, Neria answered with a three-point play on an up-and-under lay-in that pushed the Lions’ advantage to 50-42 with 1:03 remaining. Neria, Holt and Zwiers were each

shut out in the first half, but the trio keyed Lynden’s comeback with a com-bined 27 second-half points. Neria finished with 10 points, Holt scored nine points on three 3-pointers and Zwiers added eight points. Junior guard Elisa Kooiman, the NWC’s second-leading scorer, led Lynden with 16 points and eight re-bounds. Junior teammate Mariah Gonzalez dug the Lions out of an early hole by scoring Lynden’s first six points and finished with 10 in an emo-tional performance (see B1).

The Lions, in spite of their rough start, finished 15-of-31 (48.4 percent) from the field. Lynden also went 20-of-24 (83.3 percent) from the free throw line. LC senior Kara Bajema led the Lyncs with 14 points, while senior Hal-ey Hollander added nine points and eight rebounds. Sophomores Sam Van Loo and Avery Dykstra scored seven points apiece. Yet after going 12-of-25 (48 per-cent) from the field in the first half, the Lyncs were limited to just 5-of-23 (21.7 percent) in the second. For Lynden, slicing the deficit to a manageable eight points by halftime

was pivotal. “Big-game environment, big stage and we didn’t handle it very well,” Adams said of his team’s start. “(But) because our kids were tough, we were able to hang around. “Starting out so horribly, we just had to have a chance. Getting it down to three possessions by halftime was really the difference for us.” The Lions’ resilience not only paved the way for their 12th straight win, but also extended another streak: Lynden has now won eight consecu-tive games by double digits. “I think we just keep getting bet-ter and better,” Holt said.

WHATCOM — Timothy Soares scored 17 points and grabbed 14 rebounds to lead 1A No. 5-ranked Mount Baker (11-5, 5-3 Northwest Conference) to a 60-53 league win over Nooksack Valley on Friday. The visiting Mountaineers raced to a 17-7 lead by the end of the first quarter and led 44-30 after the third. Thomas Barbo added 12 points for Mount Baker, Grant Balvanz had nine points, Ethan Gates scored eight and T.J. Bass tallied seven. Keenan Gray helped facilitate the offense with a team-high five assists. Mount Baker outrebounded the Pioneers 49-32 and held Nooksack Valley to 19-of-64 (29.7 per-cent) from the field. On Jan. 19, the Mountaineers suffered a double-overtime conference loss at Lynden. Soares led Mount Baker with 29 points and 16 rebounds, while Balvanz finished with 15 points on five 3-pointers and six assists. Gray added 10 points. The Mountaineers finished with nine 3-pointers, hitting eight in the second half to rally from a halftime deficit and force overtime. Mount Baker matched Lynden with five points in the first overtime period, but the Mountaineers were out-scored 12-3 in the second overtime. On Monday, Mount Baker fell to 2A No. 6-ranked Ana-cortes in a 79-53 road loss. The Mountaineers were outscored 25-6 in the second quarter and committed 29 turnovers. Gates led Mount Baker with 12 points, Soares added 10

points, eight rebounds and four assists and Balvanz scored nine points. 2A No. 4-ranked Lynden (14-1, 6-1) earned a pair of con-ference victories last week to move into a three-way tie in the loss column atop the NWC standings. On Jan. 19, Sterling Somers scored 39 points as the Lions prevailed for a 74-65 double-overtime win over visiting Mount Baker. After the teams scored five points apiece in the first overtime period, Lynden outscored Mount Baker 12-3 in the second overtime. Somers also grabbed 12 rebounds and hit four of the Li-ons’ eight 3-pointers. Davis Bode added 12 points for Lynden and Noah King scored 10. The Lions committed just five turn-overs all game. Lynden followed up the double-overtime victory by hand-ing rival Lynden Christian its first conference loss in a 71-68 road win on Jan. 21 (see B1). If the Lions win out, they will capture the NWC crown. Zach Roetcisoender scored 31 points as 1A top-ranked Lynden Christian (15-1, 7-1) overcame an injury to point guard Josiah Meppelink and rallied from a 15-point third-quarter deficit to earn a 54-52 overtime victory at Anacortes on Jan. 19. The Lyncs, who entered the game averaging 69.8 points per contest, trailed 25-15 at halftime and 30-15 in the third

quarter. But LC ended regulation on a 32-17 run and scored the final six points of the fourth quarter to force overtime. Roetcisoender finished with three 3-pointers and nine re-bounds. Grant Rubbert grabbed a team-high 11 rebounds for LC and Jake Poag added eight points. On Jan. 21, the Lyncs suffered their first loss of the season in a 71-68 home defeat to rival Lynden (see B1). Nooksack Valley (7-9, 1-6) lost a pair of conference games last week that extended its losing streak to six. The Pioneers suffered a 60-43 loss at Burlington on Jan. 20 and then fell to Mount Baker in a 60-53 home loss on Friday. Connor Beard scored a team-high 21 points in the loss to Mount Baker, while Aaron Bosscher added 19 points and seven rebounds. Meridian (5-11, 1-7) has lost six straight games after suf-fering a pair of conference losses last week. On Jan. 20, the Trojans fell to Ferndale in a 59-44 road loss. Meridian was outscored 21-6 in the first quarter and trailed 50-25 after the third. Andrew Logan led the Trojans with 10 points. On Friday, Meridian suffered a 51-46 overtime loss to Burl-ington at home. The Trojans held a 28-23 lead after three quar-ters, but were outscored 18-13 in the fourth quarter and 10-5 in overtime. Daniel Young and Brady Moore led Meridian with 15 points apiece, while Camden Burgess added seven points.

PREP BOYS BASKETBALL ROUNDUP

Soares carries Mountaineers past Nooksack Valley

Chuckanut Bay Rugby training BELLINGHAM — Chuckanut Bay Rugby training begins this week at Whatcom Community Col-lege’s Orca Field. No previous rug-by experience is necessary. Youth training is held Mon-days and Wednesdays from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Adult men’s and wom-en’s training is held Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8 to 9:30 p.m. Youth training began on Mon-day and adult training began on Tuesday. For questions or more infor-mation, email tightheadjoel@com-cast.net.

Balvanz: Trained with former Squalicum standout in the fallContinued from B1

Lynden’s Thalia Veliz won the 190-pound title at the Lady Lipstick Open on Saturday. (Courtesy photo)

Lynden girls: Defense, resilience keyed the Lions’ comebackContinued from B1

Lynden’s Mariah Gonzalez hugs her mother, Tami, after a strong performance in the Lions’ win. Tami, who is battling cancer, was one of the game’s honorary coaches. (Cameron Van Til/Lynden Tribune)

Lynden senior guard Emily Holt hit three 3-pointers in the third quarter to spark the Lions. (Cameron Van Til/Lynden Tribune)