R.A. Long holds off Seattle Academy in late-scheduled thriller as COVID-19, winter weather jumble holiday tournaments
VANCOUVER, Wash. — Not long after organizers of the Clark County Holiday Invitational woke up Monday morning, they got word that eight teams were snowed in and wouldn’t make the annual Vancouver-based post-Christmas tournament.
It was the latest in a flurry of high school basketball cancelations statewide stemming from winter weather, on top of an ongoing COVID-19 resurgence.
“We were on the phone from 7:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. nonstop with schools, just to find out who was able to play,” tournament director Ben Jatos, a teacher at Fort Vancouver High School, said.
By the end of the night R.A. Long and Seattle Academy— two highly-ranked nonleague opponents — were playing on a few hours notice in a matchup was salvaged in an attempt to give teams still willing to travel a chance to play RPI-strengthening games.
What followed was a game that went down to the wire. R.A. Long won 72-64 behind Aaron Ofstun’s 22 points and emphatic exclamation mark dunk off of a backboard alley-oop in the final seconds. After standout guard Cavin Holden fouled out in the final minutes, Ofstun and senior guard Jamond Harris each hit a pair of free throws in the final minute to hold off a Cardinals team that pulled within a possession several times.
The Cardinals, which debuted at No. 6 in SBLive’s 1A boys power rankings, were paced by senior Logan Britt’s 21 points. Holden finished with 17 points and Harris added 13 for RA Long, which debuted at No. 2 in the state in SBLive’s 2A power rankings.
Lumberjacks coach Jeray Key was determined to play the game, even after snow caused the team’s busses to cancel. He told parents of his players that in order to play, they had to drive their son from Longview to Vancouver for liability purposes. Every parent agreed, and Key got his much-desired early season litmus test.
“We consider ourselves a top-caliber team, and knowing how good Seattle Academy is and their track record," Key said, "we needed a signature win and playing a tough team like that showed we’re a top team.”
Seattle Academy coach Shaun Burl was shocked to wake up Monday morning and learn he had hours to throw a gameplan together for team of R.A. Long’s caliber.
But he wouldn’t have had it any other way. He agreed to the game to give his team a unique early season test against an expected 2A contender. They found that in an RA Long team that features reigning 2A Greater St. Helens League player of the year Holden, a junior guard, and Ofstun, the dynamic 6-foot-8 senior.
“At this point in the season, being able to just play games that are going to make you better, regardless of if you win or lose,” Burl said. “We were in position to win the game, so that hurts a little bit, but that will only make us hungrier.”
Jatos assembled what he thought was among the most competitive fields in the event’s history, including formidable in-state programs and Canyon Springs from Las Vegas. As COVID-19 surged in the week leading up, teams began to back out as districts took away travel and overnight stays. Everett, Skyline, Shadle Park and Glacier Peak all had to bow out.
“We were sort of left with whoever had an opening,” Jatos said.
He, along with Fort Vancouver athletic director James Ensley, scrapped the bracket altogether and created individual matchups. Monday saw just two games. Tuesday and Wednesday will be a series of one-off matchups spread across the event’s two locations, Prairie High School being the other.
“All we want are experiences,” Ensley said. “We just want to bring good basketball to our area to show teams hey, we can do this.”
