NWC Team Preview – 2A – The Final 3 Teams

Devin Record November 17, 2022 @ 10:52 PM

Here I will be wrapping up the team previews for each team 2A team in the Northwest Conference. Not every team will have their own article, as I will be combining those teams in which I don't have much information on, which is this article! I will featuring Lakewood Cougars, Sedro-Woolley Cubs, Bellingham Bayhawks.   Lakewood Cougars   I am not 100% sure the reasoning as to why Lakewood played only 6 games, but I believe it was due to COVID-19. They missed around 20 days during the season. Due to them not playing many games, I don't know too much about this team. I do know they are a talented bunch who have quite a few players returning. They finished the season 4-2 and were given the opportunity to play in the district tournament. In round 1, they defeated Anacortes 61-53. In the second round they lost to eventual state champion Lynden, 41-57. They were given a second chance in the district tournament and did not let another chance slip. They then defeated Archbishiop-Murphy 57-50, advancing to the 3rd place game where the winner advances to state. They would upset Burlington-Edison 71-58 to place 3rd in the district tournament to advance to the 2A regional tournament. During regional play, they would beat Sammamish 61-53 to advance to the 2A state tournament. They would face a familiar team in the Sehome Mariners in the first round of the state tournament. They would lose a very close game, 40-42.   Graduated: Owen Rucker, Dylan Matthews, Blake Conyers, Andrew Molloy   Returning: Jordy Amevs ('23), Mason Weller ('23), Harrison Wear ('24), Zach Stoddad ('24), JJ Hoekendort ('25), Ben Rucker ('24), Evan Stacy ('24), Spencer Martin ('25), Dillion Willson ('23), Ryan Decker ('23), Ethan Greenland ('24)   Bellingham Bayhawks   The Bayhawks do have a couple role players who will not be returning following their 6-11 season last year. They have some players who had a role last year and will have their roles increase. The biggest question mark for me about Bellingham is if senior [player_tooltip player_id='1417279' first='Henry' last='Sheldrup'] will play this year. He was one of their top players last season and when I watched Bellingham over the summer, he was not playing on the team. Sometimes players have other things going on, so we will see if he plays during the season. They lost to Squalicum 38-39 in a "play-in" game for the district tournament. I expect the Bayhawks to preform similar to last season.   Graduated: Alex Breeding, Thomas Matthews, Oliver Pagels, Finn O'Malley   Returning: [player_tooltip player_id='1417279' first='Henry' last='Sheldrup'] ('23), Kinkade VanHouton ('25), Grayson Stone ('23), Jacob Lawson ('23), Wyatt Stephen ('24), Abu Osman ('23), Ian O'Roarty ('24)   Sedro-Woolley Cubs   The Cubs struggled last year throughout the year. I watched them late in the year and if I'm being honest, they were very reliant one one specific player. That isn't always a bad thing, but every team needs other players who can step up and the Cubs didn't necessarily have. With that being said, they are only losing 3 players and having a lot of role players return with varsity experience already will be extremely important. They finished the year 5-14. They would lose 46-49 in a "play-in" game against Cedarcrest for the district tournament. This will be a new look team this season and I'm excited to see how they do.   Graduated: Jerome Matgias, Tiernan Diete, Hayden Birkle   Returning: Jase Hilsinger ('24), Connor Cox ('23), Hayden Perry ('24), Brody Peterson ('23), Isaiah Baretto ('23), Corey Lewis ('24), Sherman Griffin ('25), Owen Schieb ('23), Gibson Griffin ('24)

Here I will be wrapping up the team previews for each team 2A team in the Northwest Conference. Not every team will have their own article, as I will be combining those teams in which I don't have much information on, which is this article! I will featuring Lakewood Cougars, Sedro-Woolley Cubs, Bellingham Bayhawks.