Jaden Ghoreishi leads Mt Spokane one last time; Wildcats beat Edmonds-Woodway 59-30 in fourth-place game | State 3A boys

Even though he lost half of his senior season to health concerns, Jaden Ghoreishi will go down as one of the best to come out of Mt. Spokane and the Greater Spokane League. 

On Saturday, he earned the opportunity to lead his team in one last game before heading to Colorado State in the fall. 

Ghoreishi scored 21 points with 12 rebounds, one blocked shot and two steals and the Wildcats never trailed in a 59-30 win over Edmonds-Woodway in the State 3A fourth-place game at Tacoma Dome. 

Junior Cade Strocsher added 12 points on 6-of-6 shooting. The Wildcats (20-7) held the Warriors (25-5) to 29% shooting and just 1 of 13 from beyond the arc.

“It didn’t turn out the way we wanted, but we still got the fourth-place trophy,” Ghoreishi said. “I mean, it sucked losing the first day, but we kept our heads up and we were like, ‘Nah, we got to get a higher place trophy than last year.’ So, we just got our heads up and got fourth place.”

“(Ghoreishi) is a kid who might play professional basketball someday,” Mt. Spokane coach David Wagenblast said. “He’ll be one of those kids that we talk about for a very long time. Really special kid, and basketball talent through the roof – such high potential. I was looking forward to coaching him this year and for a kid who didn’t get a chance to play for two months, I mean, not bad to come out here and average 20 in the Dome.”

Ghoreishi reflected on missing all of league play his senior year with blood clots in his lungs.

“I was definitely hard with the blood clots this year, but I tried to give it my all the last couple of games, and I’m happy with how it ended,” he said. “When you’re out for that long, you just realize, like, every game could be your last, and you just give it your all every single game. And that’s what I tried to do this week.”

Senior Jaceten Reijonen scored five points with five boards, and Wagenblast referred to him as “the consummate glue guy.”

“The last four years being a part of this, being part of this program, it’s been, you know, everything for me,” Reijonen said. “I can always remember being a little kid looking up to my brother playing and now finally, being here, it’s great to end my career on a win.”

“Couldn’t be more proud of the kid, with regards to just sticking to it, being a program guy, and getting his opportunities, and then making the most advantage of it,” Wagenblast said. “‘I’ll guard this player, I’ll go rebound, I’ll cut.’ He will do all the little things that are necessary for your team, and so I’m so happy for him to go out as a winner like this.”

After falling in a quarterfinal game, the Wildcats bounced back to win their last two games of the season.

“You always want your kids to learn lessons in life, and when things don’t go your way, what are you going to do the next day?” Wagenblast said. “And so, you’re proud of your kids, because hopefully this is something they can take with them when they’re older, and they have some setbacks, and you just get up and you keep moving forward with what you can do.”

Mt. Spokane fell to Edmonds-Woodway 41-34 in a state semifinal last year.

“I’m proud of the result of these guys paying attention to detail and really taking it to a good team, and especially a team that got us last year in the semis,” Wagenblast said. “So, I think some of our guys had a little extra juice today to play that team.”

Mt. Spokane raced out to a 6-0 lead over the first two minutes of the game, with Ghoreishi, senior Rock Franklin and Strocsher all picking up buckets. Ghoreishi had eight in the period and the Wildcats led 14-8. They turned up the defense in the second, limiting Edmonds-Woodway to four points in the period. Ghoreishi added a 3, Strocsher had a couple of buckets and the Wildcats led 25-12 at intermission.

Ghoreishi had 11 points in the first half.

The Wildcats continued the onslaught in the third quarter, scoring the first six points, and a 21-3 run sandwiching halftime – punctuated by Strocsher’s putback at the 4-minute mark of the third – made it a 20-point game.

Strocsher had seven in the third and Mt. Spokane led 50-25 entering the fourth.

“I’m really proud of our guys for showing a lot of character and showing who they really are,” Wagenblast said. “Especially for a team that, like, if we just don’t come out and play a little nervous on Thursday, maybe we’re playing in a different game.”