'All for Coach Jenkin:' Colfax boys finish off perfect 27-0 season, 2B title for late coach
Crowds were large, tears were falling as many came out to support school dealing with tragic loss of longtime coach Reece Jenkin, who died eight days earlier from pancreatic cancer
SPOKANE, Wash. — The Colfax Bulldogs are no strangers to the WIAA Class 2B basketball championships at the Spokane Arena.
And even though they defeated Adna, 69-56, for the state championship, they also did something else along the way.
Unify the entire ‘B’ basketball community.
Yes, the entire town of Colfax showed up to see its boys team finish off one of the most dominant undefeated runs in 2B history.
So did many others, from all over the region, come out to support the program guided by Reece Jenkin, the late Colfax coach who died the morning of the Bulldogs’ WIAA regional-round games — and eight days before the boys played for the state title.
Jenkin was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in early December.
On Saturday, a large crowd filled the entire lower, and almost the entire upper bowl of the arena. The sight was something seen the entire week.
After the Colfax girls were eliminated by Adna on Wednesday, a flower was given to Allie Jenkin, Reece’s daughter, in honor of her father by each one of the Pirates’ players.
She also resumed her role as team manger for the boys team, sitting on the bench for the rest of the week.
Meanwhile, on the boys side, all week the Bulldogs sported warm-up shirts reading, “All for Coach Jenkin.”
Before the Class 2B championship game Saturday, it was interim Colfax coach Ben Aune who hoisted a photo of Reece Jenkin — one of his best friends — as the game’s starting lineups were announced.
The two men had coached together the past 12 years — and their relationship extended way beyond the bench.
“(Allie and Adrik Jenkin) are as close to me as a non-family member can be, you know,” Aune said.
Adrik Jenkin scored a game-high 33 points and added 12 rebounds in the Bulldogs’ victory over Adna to clinch the school’s seventh WIAA championship.
“I knew today, in this situation, he was going to have a big game,” Aune said. “I know how much he wanted this for his dad.”
Adrik Jenkin reflected on the week, and the team’s 27-0 season.
“My dad set the standards for this team. His biggest thing was effort,” Jenkin said. “We knew if we put in effort, he would be happy, and that would lead to our success.”
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