The Vikings stormed their way through the 3A Washington State Basketball Playoffs, and defeated the Edmonds-Woodway warriors 68-48 in the State Championship to claim their first state title since 2019.
The Warriors won the tipoff, and Grant Williams of Edmonds-Woodway opened the scoring with a layup. But the Beach boys responded quickly with two three-pointers from Dre Morris and Kaden Powers to pull ahead 6-2. But on the next play, Kaden Powers would send William Alseth to the free throw line, where he made 1 of 2 throws. Jaylen Petty then scored on back-to-back possessions for the Vikings, making the score 10-3. This would be followed up by a three-point shot from Petty and a lay-up from Marques Ili-Meneese. Beach would keep the momentum going as they closed out the first quarter ahead 17-11.
Edmonds-Woodway came out strong in the second quarter as Cameron Hiatt scoring a two-pointer and William’s knocked down a three, cutting the deficit to 17-16. But the Vikings quickly struck back as Nyale Robinson sunk a three-pointer. Ili-Meneese followed this up and converted an and-one opportunity to push the Vikings’ lead to 23-20. The Warriors would fight back, but the Vikings led by Jaylen Petty would stride ahead to 32-25 at halftime.
The Vikings started off hot as Ili-Meneese stole the ball and fed Petty for a fast-break layup. Petty would follow this up with another three-pointer, as Rainier Beach would extend its lead to 39-27 before calling a timeout. The Warriors would respond with four free throws, bringing the score to 39-31. But Edmonds wouldn’t push back for long as Petty was sent to the line on an and one, making the extra point and extending Rainier Beach’s lead to 42-31 halfway through the third quarter. Powers would pick up his fourth foul, sending Alseth to the line, where he made both free throws. Robinson subbed in for Powers, and had an immediate impact as he pushed Beach to a 46-35 lead. Hiatt converted another free throw, but Ili-Meneese came up with a huge steal and dunk. In the final minute, Petty knocked down one last three-pointer for the quarter, but Edmond’s Julian Gray responded as they brought the score to 51-38 heading into the final period.
In the final quarter, Edmonds started with the ball, but Robinson quickly stole the ball and darted down the court for a layup, bringing the score to 53-38. Petty would further this Beach lead off of a rebound which he took down the court for a dunk, pushing Beach ahead to 55-38. With five minutes left on the clock, Gray hit a three-pointer, scoring 56-43, and Petty followed on the next possession with two, bringing the Vikings’ lead to 58-43. Powers then went on a 4-0 run, making the score 62-45. Alseth hit a three-pointer to bring the game to 62-48, but by this point it was too late as the Vikings kept up the pressure and closed out the game with a 20-point margin of victory at 68-48.
Rainier Beach stormed through the 3A Basketball State Playoffs, crushing every team they faced by 20+ points. Petty scored 26 points in the final against Edmonds-Woodway, along with three rebounds and two assists. The Beach Boys ended the 2024-2025 Basketball season with a 31-3 record. This Beach team, led by guys such as 5-star Jaylen Petty and 3-star Kaden Powers, scored just under 3000 points in this Winter season, and they will be looking to repeat next year and bring another state championship home to Rainier Beach.
