When the Auburn Riverside girls basketball team had dispatched with the final opponent - a considerable one in Mead - of their 2010 season, they were left standing with the 4A state championship and a perfect 29-0 record.

In their victory, Auburn Riverside displayed two characteristics that its opponents have lacked - uncompromising will and composure at the most critical moments in games.

Kat Cooper, Mercedes Wetmore and Kara Jenkins all took turns making the big basket, the big stop, or the perfect pass when they needed to be made.

“We’ve played together for a while and have a lot of trust in each other,” said Wetmore, a senior headed to the University of Washington. “We’ve been able to lock it down, or someone comes up with a key steal or basket when we needed to. Your confidence definitely grows from those kinds of things.”

Cooper, a junior, was a first-team all-tournament selection and deserved attention as tournament MVP, which her teammate Wetmore received. But it was Cooper who was on the floor settling the team down when it became disorganized time after time, making key rebounds and clutch jumpers. She scored 20 points and finished with 11 rebounds. Wetmore had 17 points, hitting only 5-of-22 from the field and 7-of-15 from the foul line.

Wetmore was there when it counted most, though. She sank two free throws and the winning basket in overtime.

Bellarmine Prep finished fourth in the state 4A basketball tournament, a “huge accomplishment” in the words of coach Kevin Meines.

But when you examine the conditions under which they managed this accomplishment, the performance is wrought even more impressive.

They finished the state tournament with a 3-1 record, while being the only school whose team was not allowed to miss classes during the tournament. This fact is perhaps not inconsequential, given the team’s lack of energy and mental focus during its only loss in the tournament, coming in its second of two back-to-back 9 p.m. games on Thursday night, a 64-52 loss to Garfield.

Asked if his players, rising at 6 a.m. for school each day, while playing basketball games that finished after 10:30 p.m. (against well-rested opponents staying in a hotel 300 paces from the basketball court) might have put his team at something of a competitive disadvantage, Meines said, “It goes with the territory,” referring to the private school’s academic orientation.

But come the final game of the 2010 season, the consolation game for fourth place on Saturday afternoon, the Bellarmine girls rallied from an 18-8 first-quarter deficit to outscore Chiawana in each of the final three quarters and come away with a 61-57 victory.

“We’ve come away from here with trophies the past two years (both for eighth place) but this time it comes with a win in the final game. That feels good,” Meines said.

Mechela Barnes led the Lions with 14 points.

“It was a great win. Shelby (Swofford) and Nyzhe (Primas) were huge for us with their free-throw shooting,” said Barnes, a senior captain who played her final game for the Lions.

Indeed, Primas was 6-for-6 on her free throws, and Swofford was 5-for-5. In the last two minutes of the game, the Lions hit 7-of-8 free throws to seal the win.

Sarah Hartwell finished with 12 points and Primas had 11.

“These kids now know they are one of the better programs in the state. I am really proud of the effort they have put into this season,” Meines said.

Hartwell was the most consistent player for the Lions in the tournament and was selected to the all-tournament team.

“She was a rock,” said Meines of Hartwell’s performance and leadership.

To reach the consolation finals, the Lions defeated Kentwood for the third time this season.

“That is an accomplishment in itself,” Meines said of the season record against the Conquerors, who were ranked No. 2 in the state late in this season.

The Lions fell behind the Conquerors in the first quarter, 19-11, but stormed back behind the play of Hartwell and Barnes to win the final three quarters and come out on top, 63-49. The two combined for 27 points and 16 rebounds.

“You never know how you are going to come out after getting eliminated in the championship bracket (by Garfield the previous night). We were a little sluggish, but we picked it up and played with good effort and heart to finish the game with a win against one of the best teams in the tournament.”

In Bellarmine’s opening-round win against Moses Lake, Hartwell led all scorers with 18 points, three assists and two steals. Sophomore Jadea Brundidge was the only other Lion player in double figures with 12 points.

In addition to Barnes, the Lions will lose seniors Swofford and Haley Grant to graduation this year. But four starters and a core of players who played significant minutes will return, placing them prominently in the conversation for the team most likely to succeed Auburn Riverside as next year’s team to beat.

“We recognized when we played them (Auburn Riverside) in the district final game that they were a team that made the plays then they counted. They could maintain their composure. I admire that. And I think this team (Bellarmine) is getting there,” Barnes said.