Bethel’s Lady Warriors made a valiant run during the game to determine fourth and sixth place at the ASAA 3A Girls Basketball State Championships, but came up short to the Sitka Lady Wolves, 53-56.
The Lady Warriors finished the first quarter behind the Wolves, but caught up to end the first half with a slight advantage, 17-16. They grew that lead through the end of the third quarter, heading into the final block of the game five points ahead of the Lady Wolves.
But in an intense final quarter, Sitka regained ground and bested the Lady Warriors by three points. Sitka finished the tournament in fourth, the Lady Warriors in sixth.
The Lady Warriors’ state success is a historic one. Their nail-biter consolation-round win against the Valdez Lady Buccaneers was the first game the team has won at a state championship tournament since 2018.
The Bethel Warrior boys didn’t make it to state this year. They placed third in the Western Conference regional championships in Utqiaġvik in early March.
The previous weekend, March 13 through March 16, 1A and 2A teams attended their state championship tournaments.
Out of Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta schools, Hooper Bay’s Warrior boys placed highest in the 1A, 2A, and 3A state tournaments, coming second to the Petersburg Vikings, 33-41 on March 16.
