Borderite winter sports preview

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Boys Basketball

The boys basketball program at Blaine is coming off of a fantastic 2023/24 season where it placed third in the 1A State Championship tournament, and finished the season with a solid 19-8 record.

Last year’s Borderites were led by two now-departed seniors, forward Matthew Rush who earned first team All-Northwest Conference (NWC) and All-State Tournament honors, and guard Lucas Smith, named a second team All-NWC selection.

For Blaine to repeat the success it enjoyed last year with a deep playoff run, it’ll need another solid performance from the upperclassmen, and to jump to the top of the NWC standings early.

Blaine boys basketball will tip off for its season opener on the road against Friday Harbor at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, November 28. The long, 17-game season will kick up a gear by early December, when the Borderites start its 1A NWC schedule on Tuesday, December 5 when the team visits Bellingham High School.

The Borderites first home game is on Saturday, December 2 at 5:30 p.m. against Archbishop Murphy.

Girls Basketball

This season, Blaine girls basketball is welcoming a new head coach, Vic Wolffis.

Wolffis comes to Blaine with an impressive coaching resume, earning two state championships, placing in the top five seven times, bringing a team to the regional round of the state tournament in every Washington high school athletics classification, and boasting a 351-225 record over his 24 years coaching high school basketball.

The girls basketball program will also face Friday Harbor away in the season opener on Tuesday, November 28. The girls team will tip off at 6 p.m.

The Borderites’ first home game will be on Tuesday, December 5 against conference foe Bellingham. That game will begin at 7:15 p.m.

Boys Wrestling

Last winter, the boys wrestling program showed out at the state tournament, with Victor Gervol placing second in his weight class and Cael Button placing third in his division. Those were the only podium finishes for the six wrestlers who made it to state, but the Tom Hinz-coached program is surely hoping for more hardware this upcoming season.

Wrestling’s opening meet is on the road at Mariner High School in Everett on Saturday, December 2, featuring matchups against eleven other schools from around western Washington.

Boys wrestling’s first home meet will be Wednesday, December 6 at 6 p.m., where the Borderites will face Lynden, Mt. Baker and Sehome wrestlers.

Girls Wrestling

The girls wrestling team also performed well at last season’s state tournament, placing 8th in the 1A classification. Now-senior Lucy Dahl and departed senior Genesis Vazquez earned All-NWC honors for their efforts last season, with Vazquez earning second place at the Mat Classic and Dahl placing fourth.

Head coach Damon Higgins’ squad will begin the year on the road at Oak Harbor High School Wednesday, December 6 at 6 p.m. The team’s first home meet of the season isn’t until Wednesday, January 10 when Blaine meets against Sehome and Meridian at 6 p.m. 

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