Brooke Walling moved to a new school, with a new coach, and she was asked to move to a new position.
Now, the new Brooke Walling can beat an opponent from anywhere on the basketball court.
She excelled as a freshman, often roaming outside of the key.
As a sophomore at Prairie High School, Walling was told she would need to impose her 6-foot, 3-inch frame in the post.
“I honestly took it as a challenge. If I could play inside and I could play outside, it would add so much to my game,” Walling said. “It was hard at first. But in the long run, it was worth it.”
Walling would showcase all of her skills throughout the regular season, and then she lifted her game to new heights during the postseason.
That ascension led to her selection as The Columbian’s All-Region girls basketball player of the year.
Walling averaged 14.1 points per game in the regular season — often playing a little more than half of the games as the Falcons routinely beat opponents by more than 30 points.
In the five playoff games, Walling averaged 19.2 points per game — as well as nine rebounds — and shot 67 percent from the floor, including 60 percent from 3-point range.
The Falcons just missed going to the Tacoma Dome, falling in the state regional round. In that game, Walling was 6 for 7 from 3-point range and scored 23 points, trying to will Prairie to the next step.
“I really wanted to win. I wanted to go to the state tournament,” she said before being reminded that the regional round technically was the state tournament.
“I wanted to go to the Tacoma Dome. I just gave it all I had to do my best to get us there.”
The six 3-pointers were the most she has hit in a game. It was fun to be in that zone.
“After I made my first two, I said, ‘Alright, I’m just going to shoot when I get the ball.’ We were running all this stuff for me to get a 3-pointer,” she recalled.
Still, the Falcons fell short of the goal. One team that Prairie beat in the bi-district tournament ended up reaching the state semifinals.
“It’s still a rough time right now,” Walling said, three weeks after the loss. “It’s really hard. At the same time, it’s an opportunity for us to come back next year, make it there, and maybe even win it.”
Prairie did, after all, have nine sophomores and freshmen on the squad. There really is not anything like a rebuilding year for a program such as Prairie’s, but this was close.
Walling knew all about the expectations at Prairie when she moved there. As a freshman, she excelled at Mark Morris in Longview.
“Going into it, I definitely learned all about the Prairie program. I knew it was going to be intense because of all they had accomplished,” Walling said of the team that has now reached at least the round of 16 the past 20 seasons. “It was intense. But I enjoyed playing with all the girls. It was a lot of fun.”
The season is over, but basketball continues. Club ball is about to start. And Walling and many of her teammates continue to work.
She learned this season that there is always a new approach to the game.
“We’re constantly in the gym,” she said.
Rest of the All-Region girls basketball team
First team
- Beyonce Bea, Washougal: Class 2A GSHL’s player of the year led Panthers to state tournament for second consecutive season.
- Ashlee Comastro, Skyview: Broken foot ended her season early, but coaches know her talent: Voted her 4A GSHL player of the year.
- Mason Oberg, Washougal: Freshman shined all season, then stepped it up at state, leading team in scoring in Yakima Valley SunDome.
- Taylor Stephens, La Center: Trico League MVP led the region in scoring (20.6 ppg), lifting the Wildcats to their first trip to Yakima since ’09.
- Jozie Tangeman, Prairie: Four-year varsity player lifted her game to another level and was voted the 3A GSHL player of the year.
Second team
