Shorecrest boys get redemption, earn state tournament bid

MARYSVILLE – Porter Swanson wanted to make it up to his teammates.

The Shorecrest senior committed a game-sealing turnover in a 48-44 loss to Monroe in the District 1 3A Boys Basketball semifinals on Wednesday, and now the Scots had one more chance to secure a state bid on Saturday in a win-or-go-home consolation game at Marysville-Pilchuck High School.

Leading 46-44 with 11 seconds left against No. 5 seed Marysville-Getchell (16-7), the No. 2 Scots (21-3) needed a stop. Getchell senior Bubba Palacol drove down the lane and dished it to classmate Zack Pittman at the left low post. Pittman went up for a layup, but Swanson got his hand on the ball, knocking it loose as time ran out. For Swanson, it was redemption. For the Scots, it was a ticket punched.

Final: Shorecrest wins 46-44

It came down to the last play, but the Scots make the stop to advance to the state tournament. Fischer led with 17p,

Bubba Palacol with a game-high 20p in the loss @HeraldNetPreps pic.twitter.com/P2jRNNVJxh

— Joe Pohoryles (@Joe_Poho) February 23, 2025

“It feels good,” Swanson said. “I feel like I owe it to my team, so I had to make up for it. We’re (heading) to the (Tacoma) Dome now, and that’s all I could ask for. I told my guys I would take them. Job done, baby, let’s go.”

Scots junior Brayden Fischer led with 17 points, and senior Devan Jones chipped in nine. Swanson had seven points and five rebounds. Palacol scored a game-high 20 points for the Chargers in the loss.

“Porter, he’s probably our leader. He’s the most vocal guy, and he holds everybody accountable and himself accountable,” Shorecrest coach Eddie George said. “So for him to do that, it doesn’t surprise me.”

Shorecrest ripped off a 7-0 run midway through the first quarter to pull ahead, starting when Junior Kagarabi’s block led to a Swanson 3-pointer at the other end to go up 8-6 around 5:30 into the game.

Getchell’s Mariano Palacol hit a couple of 3s in the final two minutes of the half to cut it to a one-possession game, but the Scots responded each time. First, Kagarabi nailed a corner 3 with 1:20 left, then Fischer hit a 3 and a buzzer-beating layup on back-to-back possessions to go into the break up 29-23.

Bubba Palacol took over in the third quarter, following up teammate Wyatt Harris’ 3-pointer by scoring the next eight points for the Chargers, capped with a 3 to tie the game 34-34 with two minutes left in the frame, and the score carried over into the fourth with Getchell breathing new life.

“We just had to stay tough and trust each other,” Fischer said. “I trust everybody on my team to get it done. We knew we could get it done.”

A couple of layups from Scots sophomore Jack Thompson put Shorecrest up four early in the fourth quarter, and the two sides traded makes and misses down the stretch. Fischer nailed two free throws with 33.3 seconds left to push the Scots’ lead to 45-42. Bubba Palacol hit a layup to cut the deficit to one, and Kagarabi went 1-for-2 from the line after a Getchell foul to set up the last play, where Porter’s block sent his team to state.

“When we’re on our game, I’ll be honest with you, I think we can beat anyone,” George said. “But it’s just a matter of the guys locking in, focusing for 32 minutes, following the game plan, and again – I go back to this all the time – playing together. You can’t win by yourself.”

A few minutes after Swanson declared the job finished – in terms of qualifying for the state tournament – he retracted.

“I say the job is not finished, as corny as it is, it’s true,” Swanson said. “If anything, (playing at Tacoma) Dome is going to be harder than this. It’s all the best teams in the state. So we just got to step up practice every day.”

Job finished or not, the Scots did what they needed to do to keep their season alive. Either way, maybe now Swanson can call it even.