THURSTON – The No. 4 Thurston Colts took down No. 13 Ridgeview (13-12) 57-40 on Friday in the first round of the OSAA Class 5A state playoffs.
While they ended the first half tied at 20, the Colts were able to pull away in the third quarter.
The Colts outscored the Ravens 15-3 in this period, and held that lead for the rest of the game.
“The biggest thing that changed was our defensive intensity. We never buckled defensively in the first half and we had a couple minor brain farts, but we stayed steady,” Thurston coach Blaine Liberatore said. “It was a heavyweight fight and I’m really proud of our kids. I thought we stood in the middle of the ring and absorbed some shots, and gave plenty of them back.”
The standout for the Colts on Friday was senior post player Leofatu Filipe, who led the team with 16 points and seven rebounds.
“Leo was unstoppable down low,” Liberatore said. “That’s a big kid, but he moves so well, like a cheetah. He’s such a good basketball player, such a good football player, and such a good kid. I thought he really just was in attack mode tonight.”
With the victory, Thurston advances to the quarterfinals on Wednesday – after The Chronicle’s deadline – to face No. 5 Summit (19-6). The Colts have yet to face Summit this season, but that doesn’t mean the teams don’t have history.
“We played them in the first round last year in the quarterfinals, and we didn’t play very well. We scratched and clawed but couldn’t get over the hump. That’s a really good, well-coached team,” Liberatore said. “We talked briefly about it, but we’re gonna rest up. We’ll get our game plan together, and we’ll get prepped and ready to go.”
