Mercer Island boys prepare for state after upsetting Rainier Beach

In a day of upsets at Bellevue College, top ranked teams fell and through it Mercer Island held on to secure a spot at the 3A state tournament.

The Mercer Island boys beat Rainier Beach on Saturday afternoon to secure the No. 5 seed out of districts to the state tournament. Rainier Beach's season ended with the 50-43 loss. The Vikings were ranked No. 2 in the state prior to this week's games. The top ranked team, Seattle Prep, also lost on Saturday, losing the district title game to Bellevue.

With the win the Islanders will travel across the state next week for the first round of state. Mercer Island will play in Spokane on Friday, Feb. 25.

Against Rainier Beach on Saturday, Derek Newhof had 22 points for Mercer Island, while Quinn Sterling and Kaj Sherman each added seven to the point total.

Rainier Beach's Hikeem Stewart put up 14 points for his team.

Against Franklin, Mercer Island dominated the match, ending the first half with a 37-16 lead.

During the win Quinn Sterling had 17 points, while Sean Hughes, Derek Newhof and Kaj Sherman each posted 10 for the Islanders.

The Islanders now face Rainier Beach on Saturday, Feb. 19 at 3 p.m. The winner earns the fifth seed out of district two for the state tournament, while the loser is done for the season. The winner will move to the Spokane regional state game, at Spokane Falls Community College next Friday, Feb. 25.

Contact Mercer Island Reporter Reporter Megan Managan at mmanagan@mi-reporter.com or (206) 232-1215 ext. 5054.

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