YAKIMA - Make no doubt about it, the eight seniors on the Lynden boys' basketball team are winners.

You don't even have to be talking about basketball - or football or baseball, for that matter - to see that.

And now that their high school basketball careers are all said and done, they can actually say they went out with a win.

It may not have been the win they expected, and it certainly wasn't the win they had dreamed of, but it was a win none the less.

"This means a lot to us," Lions senior Matt Meyer said. "This was our last game together, and we get to go out with a win. We got to play hard together one last time, and we got the win."

Though they may have found their touch 18 hours too late, the Lions' shooters went out with their guns blazing, as they hit seven 3-pointers and shot 48.3 percent from the floor in the first half to cruise past Renton 64-41 in the third-place game of the Class 2A State Tournament on Saturday, March 2, at the Yakima Valley SunDome. Lynden wrapped up its season with a 25-2 record.

The victory not only sent the eight seniors on Lynden's roster off as winners and made the program's 32nd state trophy for third place, rather than fifth, it also eased some of the sting of a disappointing 52-44 loss to Northwest Conference rival Anacortes in the state semifinals on Friday, March 1 - a loss that ended the Lions' chances of a repeat championship and their dreams of completing a "trifecta" title that alluded them by just one half baseball inning last spring when they were juniors.

"There are a lot of things I'm going to remember about this class, but most of all, I'm going to remember the type of people they are," Lynden coach Brian Roper said. "They were winners, and that had nothing to do with wins and losses. The way they supported each other through adversity was amazing to watch, and they accomplished a lot to make our school and our town proud. They were proud to wear the green and gold. To me that is a greater legacy than the first- and third-place trophies they won the last two years."

Seven of Lynden's eight seniors scored in Saturday's game, including a 3-pointer by Bret DeGraaff with 29 seconds left on the clock that sent the Lions bench, which included Lynden's five starting seniors, and the student section into orbit.

"Of everything that has happened here, that is probably my favorite memory of this state tournament," Roper said.

Unlike Friday, there were plenty of memorable moments to choose from on Saturday.

Meyer and Zach Vis each made big contributions, scoring nine points and grabbing seven rebounds apiece.

Dak Shagren, who injured his wrist early Friday so badly he didn't even attempt 3-pointers during warm-ups on Saturday, nailed three treys in the first quarter and finished with a team-high 15 points.

Sharp-shooter John Shine regained his touch and finished with 10 points.

Point guard Josh Kraght hit a 3 in the fourth quarter, and Marcus Fakkema scored on a jumper and grabbed four rebounds.

And most importantly, the smile was back on the Lions' faces - at least it was until the gravity of their final game together hit them in the locker room.

"We always wanted to go out winners," Vis said. "But this is definitely bittersweet. These guys have been my family. I'm going to miss them."

But that's the only missing Vis and the Lions were thinking about on Saturday.

Unlike on Friday, when they missed 22 of their 26 second-half shot opportunities (84.6 percent), the Lions opened Saturday's game hitting 14 for 29 first-half attempts, including 4 of 8 attempts from 3-point range.

Though those numbers dipped a little in the second half, Lynden still got to showcase some of what had propelled it to Northwest Conference and Northwest District titles this season, as well as a trip to the state semifinals.

"We were able to get a couple of hustle plays early, and I think that really reinstated our confidence," Roper said. "I think the guys were much more relaxed today. They just played the game. We played with a lot of joy."

Renton, on the other hand, wasn't feeling the joy.

Lynden came out in an uncharacteristic 2-3 zone, rather than its usual man defense, to exploit an Indians squad that had struggled with its own perimeter shooting.

"It was the third day of the tournament, so we figured we'd try to take advantage of some weary legs," Roper said. "I don't think it always matters what type of defense you play, it matters how you play it, and I thought we played pretty good defensively today."

The Lions held Renton to 25.4-percent shooting (15 for 59).

That helped Lynden jump out to a 19-9 lead by the end of the first quarter, stretch it to 35-16 by halftime and roll from there. By midway through the fourth quarter, Kraght was able to take a foul so that he and the other four Lynden starters could come out, together, to a standing ovation.

Lynden even won the battle on the boards against the athletic, but much smaller Indians squad, 45-40.

"They didn't have anybody as big as we do, and we were just able to clear out some space," Meyer said. "(Assistant coach Mike) McKee taught us how to read the ball and anticipate where it's going, and I thought we did a good job of that tonight."

Not a bad way to go out - even if it didn't come in the biggest game of the year.

But don't say your goodbyes just yet. A number of Lynden's seniors still have the spring sports seasons ahead of them, including Kyle Mark on the boys' golf team.

"Me and Matt and Josh are ready for some baseball," Vis said. "Who knows, maybe we'll even get John or Dak to make an appearance with us or something. We're not done yet."

And neither is the program.

Though Lynden graduates a ton, the cupboard certainly won't be bare.

Junior Jaremy Martin played strong all three days, as his four points and three rebounds Saturday gave him 23 points and 12 rebounds for the tournament.

Sophomore post Scott Hastings also got quality minutes all three days and finished with six points, six rebounds and two blocks on Saturday.

And there is plenty of other talent on the way, Roper said.

"We love our eight seniors and we're going to miss them," Roper said. "But we're very excited about what we've got coming up. ... We feel that success breeds success."

And success is something Lynden has had plenty of the past two seasons.

Reach David Rasbach at david.rasbach@bellinghamherald.com or 360-715-2286.

LYNDEN 64, RENTON 41

Renton 9 7 13 12 - 41

Lynden 19 16 18 11 - 64

FG FT Reb

RENTON Min M-A M-A O-T A PF PTS

Aaron Johnson 12 1-6 0-0 2-3 0 0 2

James Weathington 10 0-4 0-0 3-5 0 0 0

Jonah Magat 7 1-1 0-0 1-2 0 0 2

Skykiel Milord 16 2-3 1-4 3-3 0 1 5

Moshea Cox 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1 0

Donavon Saario 19 4-8 0-1 0-2 1 1 10

Justin Pienh 21 1-5 0-0 0-1 0 2 3

Jordan Holland 15 1-6 2-2 2-5 0 3 4

Zack Lee 15 2-11 1-2 2-5 0 1 6

Jhalante Smith 1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0

Lavelle Smith 23 2-9 2-4 2-5 1 3 6

Jonathan Patterson 20 1-6 1-4 2-6 0 1 3

Totals 15-59 7-17 19-40 2 13 41

Percentages: FG .254, FT .412. 3-Point FG: 4-18, .222 (Saario 2-3, Pienh 1-5, Holland 0-2, Lee 1-5, L. Smith 0-2, Patterson 0-1). Blocked Shots: 0. Steals: (Magat 1, L. Smith 4). Turnovers: 16 (Magat 2, Milord 2, Cox 1, Saario 1, Pienh 3, L. Smith 3, Patterson 4).

FG FT Reb

LYNDEN Min M-A M-A O-T A PF PTS

Josh Kraght 20 2-7 0-0 1-3 0 1 5

Kyle Mark 6 0-4 0-0 0-1 0 1 0

Zach Vis 19 3-5 2-2 1-7 2 2 9

John Shine 27 4-12 1-2 0-5 4 2 10

Dak Shagren 25 6-9 1-2 0-1 4 1 15

Jaremy Martin 15 1-3 2-2 0-2 0 3 4

Scott Hastings 13 1-3 2-2 3-6 0 3 6

Jalani Phelps 4 0-0 0-1 0-0 0 0 0

Sterling Somers 4 0-0 1-2 2-2 0 2 1

Matt Meyer 15 3-5 3-3 4-7 0 0 9

Marcus Fakkema 7 1-3 0-0 2-4 1 1 2

Brett DeGraaff 5 1-3 0-0 0-1 0 0 3

Totals 24-56 9-12 15-45 11 16 64

Percentages: FG .429, FT .750. 3-Point FG: 7-19, .368 (Kraght 1-3, Mark 0-4, Vis 1-1, Shine 1-3, Shagren 3-4, Martin 0-1, Fakkema 0-1, DeGraaff 1-2). Blocked Shots: 2 (Hastings 2). Steals: 12 (Kraght 1, Vis 2, Shagren 2, Martin 2, Phelps 1, Somers 2, Fakkema 1, DeGraaff 1). Turnovers: 15 (Kraght 1, Mark 2, Vis 1, Shine 2, Martin 4, Hastings 1, Phelps 1, Somers 2, Meyer 1).

2012-13 RESULTS

Dec. 10 at Sehome W 68-34

Dec. 11 Mount Baker W 64-32

Dec. 12 Anacortes W 61-51

Dec. 14 Bellingham* W 66-38

Dec. 18 at Squalicum* W 57-39

Dec. 21 Burlington-Edison* W 61-33

Dec. 22 Tahoma (at Kent) L 57-43

Dec. 27 University City, Calif. (at San Diego) W 49-35

Dec. 28 Skyline (at San Diego) W 52-43

Dec. 29 Granite Bay, Calif. (at San Diego) W 66-58

Jan. 4 at Anacortes* W 75-58

Jan. 7 Nooksack Valley* W 75-35

Jan. 11 Lynden Christian* W 53-48, OT

Jan. 17 at Mount Baker* W 68-17

Jan. 19 Mark Morris (at Lacey) W 59-55

Jan. 22 Sehome* W 50-34

Jan. 25 Blaine* W 62-24

Jan. 28 at Ferndale* W 61-38

Jan. 31 Meridian* W 62-39

Feb. 5 at Sedro-Woolley* W 66-47

CLASS 2A DISTRICT 1/2 TOURNAMENT

Feb. 8 Sultan W 68-27

Feb. 11 Sehome W 46-37

Feb. 15 Burlington-Edison (at Mount Vernon) W 63-41

CLASS 2A STATE TOURNAMENT

Feb. 23 Sumner W 58-39

Feb. 28 Yakima West Valley (at Yakima) W 60-42

March 1 Anacortes (at Yakima) L 52-44

March 2 Renton (at Yakima) W 64-41

2012-13 STATISTICS

No. Player Yr. Pos. G Pts. Avg.

3. Josh Kraght Sr. G 25 99 4.0

10. Kyle Mark Sr. F 24 63 2.6

11. Zach Vis Sr. F 27 174 6.4

20. John Shine Sr. G 27 363 13.4

21. Dak Shagren Sr. G 27 346 12.8

22. Jaremy Martin Jr. F 27 164 6.1

23. Scott Hastings So. C 27 120 4.4

24. Jalani Phelps Jr. F 18 22 1.2

32. Sterling Somers Fr. F 11 16 1.5

34. Matt Meyer Sr. C 25 192 7.7

35. Marcus Fakkema Sr. F 22 45 2.0

44. Bret DeGraaff Sr. F 18 17 0.9

TROPHY CASE

Year Class Place

1924 4A Second

1931 4A Seventh

1935 4A Third

1942 4A Fourth

1958 1A Fifth

1959 1A Fifth

1960 1A Fourth

1961 1A First

1962 1A First

1968 1A First

1970 1A Fifth

1976 1A Fourth

1978 1A Fifth

1980 1A Seventh

1981 1A First

1983 1A Second

1985 1A Third

1986 1A Second

1987 1A Seventh

1989 1A Third

1990 1A Seventh

1991 1A First

1992 1A First

1996 3A Sixth

1997 3A Third

2002 3A Sixth

2006 3A Third

2007 2A First

2008 2A Forth

2010 2A Sixth

2012 2A First

2013 2A Third

SOURCE: WIAA.com

Reach DAVID RASBACH at david.rasbach@bellinghamherald.com or call 715-2271.