After a gutsy 63-55 loser-out victory over the Walla Walla Blue Devils on Friday at the WIAA 4A State Boys Basketball Championships held in the Tacoma Dome, the Inglemoor Vikings earned their way into Saturday’s fourth-seventh-place consolation final against a tough Gonzaga Prep team.

The Vikings gave the Bullpups everything they had, but fell just short in a 72-64 overtime loss to place seventh at state.

The tightly contested game had 18 lead changes as the Vikings’ excellent long-range shooting, 6-of-10 from beyond the arc, kept it close.

With Inglemoor nursing a slim 29-27 lead at the half, the Bullpups struggled mightily in the third quarter, shooting 3-for-16 as a team, after guard Sean Fischer opened up with back-to-back 3-pointers.

In the fourth, however, Fischer single-handedly put Gonzaga Prep back in the game by scoring eight consecutive points, including two 3s to put his team back in the lead.

With the clock winding down, Viking guard Benji Bryant had a chance to win the game with a 3-ball at the buzzer that hit the rim just short, sending the game into overtime.

Unfortunately for the Viks, who had gotten into foul trouble early in the fourth quarter, the Bullpups shot a nearly flawless 9-of-10 from the line during overtime to seal the win.

“They had great balance, I thought we had a difficult time defending them,” said Bullpups head coach Mike Haugen on Inglemoor’s team. “We really had to gut it out to get stops.”

Viking senior Adam McElwee led the team with 18 points, followed by Todd Campbell who posted a double-double with 15 points and 12 rebounds, and Bryant with 10.

David Stockton, son of Utah Jazz all-star point guard John Stockton, led the Bullpups with 22, followed by Fischer with 21. Stockton and Fischer combined to drain nine 3-pointers against Inglemoor.

“We played today one of our better games of the year, we just ran into a really good team,” said Inglemoor head coach Greg Lowell. “They had the right guys shooting today.”

After hitting the game-winning jumper from the left side against Roosevelt on Wednesday, Bryant struggled in his last game as a Viking, shooting 4-of-11 and fouling out, but he was able to put his phenomenal prep career, and the Vikings’ great season, in perspective.

“It was just one of those games, but I was proud of the guys that we fought hard after we had three starters foul out and we were still battling back,” Bryant said. “It was a great year to get seventh in the state when no one even had us ranked until the very end.”

The Vikings finished the season with an overall record of 19-8 after finishing the league season at 12-4 and taking second at the Kingco tournament.

Super seniors

Win or lose, the Vikings brought some hardware back to Inglemoor High. The trophy and accompanying banner represent a season of dedication and hard work for the team’s graduating seniors McElwee, Bryant and Campbell, along with reserves Tom Dougherty and Paul Ena.

“What a great senior class, you can see how poised they are,” Lowell raved. “If I could coach a group every year, it would be this one. Not just for the talent, but the type of people they are.”

Lowell continued to describe the Vikings’ arduous path to place at the state tournament, from winning a number of close basketball games during the league season, to winning the division and getting to the Kingco title game against Garfield (which lost to Federal Way in the 4A Championship game, 62-54), to gutting out a 42-40 win against Roosevelt at 9 a.m. on Wednesday morning.

“The thing I would say with these guys is just character, through and through,” Lowell said. “That’s how we were. We were resilient.”

Great group of guys

Perhaps no one knows better than the seniors themselves what it has meant to be a part of the fraternity of Viking basketball players, for many since their elementary school years.

“I loved it,” McElwee said of his time with the program. “It’s been a wonderful two years that I’ve been playing … I couldn’t have asked for a better team.”

Campbell, who has been slated as the starting quarterback for the Vikings’ football team each of the last two seasons, admitted that this year’s basketball team was one of the most fun he had ever played on. “It was an awesome experience … I was glad just to be a part of it,” he said. “They’re such a great group. Funny guys, quiet guys, serious guys, guys that can lead. We’ve all come together from the beginning of the season to the end.”