BELLINGHAM - Stefawn Perrin never even made it into the locker room to change out of her black road jersey, but chances are she would sleep in that outfit if she could.
After getting hugs from every coach, a standing ovation from the Blaine faithful that made the trip to Sehome for a Saturday matinee and doing the obligatory radio interview, Perrin's girls' basketball teammates rushed back on the court to give her an enthusiastic hug and pose for pictures to make the moment last longer.
All the while, the smile never left Perrin's face.
"I wish I could come back next year and play with this team again," the senior said. "I've waited four years for this team. We're like a big family. We have a lot of fun together and have so much love for each other, and we put everything we have out there on the court."
The wait was definitely worth it for Perrin as she and the Borderites clinched a trip to the Class 2A Northwest District Tournament with a 39-37 Northwest Conference overtime victory over Sehome on Saturday, Feb. 4.
For the first three years of her high school career, Perrin was Blaine's only consistent scoring option on teams that went a combined 16-43, but that all changed this year thanks to a talented class of freshmen that helped take some of the pressure off her and put the Borderites over the top. But when Blaine needed her the most on Saturday, the senior proved she's still plenty capable of stepping up, scoring the team's final 12 points in the fourth quarter and overtime and finishing with a game-high 16.
"She actually likes this role a lot better," Blaine coach Jeremy Hinchey said. "She's more comfortable not having to be the only scorer for us. But she's still the player we go to when we need a bucket in a game like this."
While Perrin has waited four frustratingly long years to play on a playoff team, it's been even longer for the program.
"For eight years, it's been a battle," Hinchey said. "We had a string of success before that when I was an assistant on (former coach Rob Adams') staff, but it's been a struggle since. But the girls never quit working to get to this point."
Blaine (14-5, 9-3 NWC) now has clinched at least a tie for third place in the NWC 2A standings, and the Borderites own the inside track to the conference's No. 2 seed to the district tournament. Should Blaine beat Nooksack Valley in the regular-season finale on Monday, Feb. 6, or if Sehome loses to Squalicum that night, Blaine would get to host a first-round game.
Sehome (14-5, 9-3) had already locked up its spot in the district tournament, but now will likely go in as the No. 3 seed unless the Mariners beat Squalicum and Blaine loses on Monday.
Anacortes, Lynden and Mount Baker are all a game back at 8-4 in conference play and are scrambling for the final two postseason spots in games against Lynden Christian, Sedro-Woolley and Ferndale, respectively, in what figures to be a wild final night.
Fortunately, Perrin and the Borderites enter the evening knowing their spot is safe.
"It's an amazing feeling," Perrin said. "So much hard work went into this, and it's great to know that we get to play in the playoffs."
Blaine might not be saying that yet if Perrin hadn't stepped up in the closing minutes of regulation and overtime, though.
After a late third-quarter surge to get the lead, the Borderites held a 28-20 advantage midway through the four quarter after Breanna Chau hit an underhanded lay-up with 4:18 to play.
But Sehome stormed back with an 11-1 run over the next 31/2 minutes to claim the lead back. Rachel Albert hit a pair of free throws with 1:28 remaining in regulation to tie it at 29, before Jessica Bertucci found Haley Smith open for a 15-foot jumper right of the key with 45 seconds left to make it 31-29 Mariners.
After the teams traded a series of miscues, Perrin was fouled driving the lane with 10 seconds left. She calmly stepped to the line and sank both free throws to tie it up again.
Jori Hall wasn't as fortunate at the other end for Sehome, as she missed a pair of free throws with 3 seconds left. Though Sehome got the loose-ball rebound, the Mariners weren't able to convert a hurried final shot, and the game went to overtime.
In overtime, Perrin gave Blaine a lead 2:02 in with two more free throws, but Albert tied it with a put-back bucket on Sehome's next possession.
Perrin answered with a driving lay-up to make it 35-33, then added a 3-pointer off a crisp pass from Chau after a series of Blaine offensive rebounds to make it 38-33 with 35 seconds left.
"It's nice to be put in that situation where your teammates are looking to you with the game on the line," Perrin said.
After Sehome's Ana Miksovsky and Perrin traded free throws to make it 39-34, Hall made a put-back basket and was fouled with nine seconds left. She made the free throw to cut Blaine's lead to two points, but Jessica Bertucci's hurried shot at the buzzer was off the mark.
Though Perrin played an instrumental role on Saturday, she is the first to admit it was a team effort and the contributions of three talented freshmen - Chau, Taylor V'Dovec and Mandy Hayes - that helped get the team over the hump and into the postseason.
"They're all special in their own way," Perrin said. "They all bring their own special skills to this team. That's what's so nice about this team, is everybody does something to help this team win. It's a lot of fun to be a part of."
Hayes finished with six points and six rebounds, while Chau had five points, six rebounds and four steals. Alexis McElwain logged seven rebounds and two assists along with her four points.
Sehome got 12 rebounds each from Albert and Hall, and Albert added 13 points for a double-double.
"We need to take care of business on Monday and hope that Nooksack can knock (Blaine) off," Sehome coach Kim Kirk said. "Fortunately, we did what we needed to do earlier in the week. It's kind of a bummer to wrap up the week on a down note like this, but Blaine made the shots they needed to make late, and you're not going to win many games when you go (13 for 24) from the foul line. Hopefully, we'll take this game and learn from it and get things turned around so we can make a good run in the postseason."
Reach David Rasbach at david.rasbach@bellinghamherald.com or 360-715-2271.
BLAINE 39, SEHOME 37 (OT)
Blaine 6 6 12 7 8 - 39
Sehome 9 7 3 12 6 - 37
Blaine: Stefawn Perrin 16, Amber Johnson 2, Olivia Olason 2, Breanna Chau 5, Alexis McElwain 4, Cassy Richardson 2, Rhiana Breedlove 0, Taylor V'Dovec 2, Mandy Hayes 6. Team totals: 14-49 8-12 39.
Sehome: Rachel Albert 13, Erika Smith 0, Meagan McIntyre 0, Jori Hall 7, Jessica Bertucci 3, Hallie Messenger 2, Haley Smith 8 Ana Miksovsky 4. Team totals: 11-55 13-24 37.
3-ptg: Blaine 3 (Perrin, Chau, Hayes), Sehome 2 (Bertucci, Smith). Rebounds: Blaine 43 (McElwain 7), Sehome 51 (Albert 12, Hall 12). Assists: Blaine 6 (McElwain 2, Richardson 2), Sehome 4 (Bertucci 2). Fouls: Blaine 21 (V'Dovec fouled out), Sehome 15 (McIntyre fouled out). Turnovers: Blaine 22, Sehome 23.
