Several coaches and players that C2BL fans have grown familiar with will not be on the court this winter.
Napavine coach Rex Stanley stepped down, leaving with a four-man senior class that was led by 2,000-point scorer James Grose.
Adna lost five seniors, including Lane Johnson and Braeden Salme, who both earned all-league honors.
Toutle Lake said goodbye to both coach Eric Swanson and Zach Swanson, the Ducks’ all-time leading scorer, and four other seniors.
Wahkiakum isn’t even in the league anymore after dropping to the 1Bs, leaving one fewer tough place to play. Kalama is also out, as the Chinooks have made the leap to 1A.
While Napavine, Adna, and Toutle Lake have reasons to be excited, the door is seemingly open for other teams to make the leap into the league’s top tier.
Toledo got within a game of the state tournament in February, losing three winner-to-state games over the final four days of the district tournament.
The Riverhawks did lose six seniors, but three starters are back, including Cooper Fallon. Fallon earned all-league honors as a sophomore by averaging 11 points and 10 rebounds per game, and he grabbed 26 rebounds in a district tournament win over Wahkiakum in February.
Rainier finished with a winning record in league play last fall, but lost both of its games at districts.
All three Meldrum boys — Jake, Josh, and Jimmy — are back, as is Hunter Howell, giving the Mountaineers four seniors they can rely on as the season progresses. Peyton Sheaffer, a sophomore, should see more usage after a solid freshman season.
Mossyrock is also looking to shake things up in its return to the 2B realm.
Tom Kelly’s crew is coming off a 1B state runner-up finish, and the Vikings are undergoing a youth movement of their own.
Out are Zach Munoz, Hunter Isom, and Luke Cooper, and in are sophomore Kevin Mitchell and eighth-grader Colby Cournyer. A couple familiar faces are back as well, including Easton Kolb and Shaun Fry.
Morton-White Pass just missed out on a district tournament berth last February, and five seniors departed, including Tony Belgiorno.
Judah Kelly, one of the league’s most prolific scorers, is back to lead the charge, though, as are Logan Mays. Noah Troy and Race McKenzie have also seen time early. Troy is back for his senior season after not playing since freshman year, and McKenzie recently played his first high school game.
Onalaska and Winlock are two teams that are also looking to compete for spots at districts.
The Loggers won just two games in league play last year, but a trio of seniors — Justin Jacoby, Blaze Underhill, and Case McGraw — and a new coach (Fred Sturza) are looking to make a statement.
Winlock went winless in league play last year, but the Cardinals do bring back Landen Cline, who earned all-league recognition as a freshman last winter.
All of those teams will be chasing Toutle Lake, Napavine, and Adna, though, the top dogs who will remain that until they are knocked off.
Napavine and Adna finished first and second at districts before both earned top-five finishes at state (Adna took fourth and Napavine finished fifth).
New Napavine coach Eric Hersman was an assistant to Stanley for three seasons before getting the promotion this season, and he’ll still have plenty of talent to work with.
First-team all-league guard Karsen Denault is back, as are Jack Nelson and Cal Bullock, who both saw extended minutes last season. Tyler Watson, Hudson Chambers, and Grady Wilson are all juniors that should see more time on the floor, and Beckett Landram is also expected to step into a bigger role.
The Tigers are getting a later start, as they don’t begin play until Dec. 13 to give their football players some time.
Adna coach Luke Salme is back for the Pirates, and while Braeden Salme and Lane Gordon are out, sharpshooting sophomore Trevin Salme and senior forward Gavan Muller are back.
Trevin Salme shot 41 percent from beyond the arc last season, which includes a 7 for 11 performance in the 4th/6th game at Spokane Arena in March.
Grayson Humphrey and Jackson Knittle have already made their mark, combining for 28 points in the Pirates’ first game of the season, and Salme is looking forward to their growth over the course of the next several weeks.
“They competed against those guys in every practice last year,” Salme said. “Our focus will be on being great teammates, competing like crazy every single day, and being a team no one wants to play by the end of the season.”
