SNOHOMISH, Wash. – One of the fantastic elements about the “Top of the Peak” holiday girls basketball tournament at Glacier Peak High School is it brings different walks of life – geographically and school size – together for high-end competition.
And this year, one of those teams is W.F. West High School, a perennial Class 2A state participant.
Which also has arguably the state’s most unheralded standout – 6-foot-4 senior post player Julia Dalan – on its roster.
Dalan, SBLive WA’s reigning Class 2A player of the year, is a virtual unknown among many bigger-school coaches – until they play against her.
This week, that list includes Tahoma and Lake Stevens – 2024 WIAA tournament participants – whose coaches lauded Dalan’s athletic length, two-way impact and overall efficiency.
“She is so fluid,” Lake Stevens girls coach Seth Dodge said. “You don’t get that from high school post players a lot.”
And yet, Dalan is OK being the under-the-radar prospect – the NCAA Division I signee with Portland who kind of keeps to herself.
“I don’t have TikTok,” Dalan said. “I don’t think I’ve ever sent film of myself to anyone.
“There are good people who promote themselves, and that is great to do your own thing. But I’ve just never felt a point it was for me.”
Her recruiting motto has been simple: “If you are good enough, it will be obvious.”
And Dalan is plenty good.
Her journey has been adventurous: She started out as the second-fiddle ninth grader on varsity to Drea Brumfield, who went on to Pepperdine and Montana State.
The past two seasons, Dalan has been the team’s focal point, producing despite constant double-teams in the paint.
This winter, the W.F. West guards have grown up, especially the sophomore duo of Dilyn Boeck and Kaitlyn Chioupek, along with transfer Rhylee Beebe. And they’ve allieviated some of the interior defensive pressure on Dalan.
“We’ve learned how to play off of her, and with her when (defenders) take something that she wants,” W.F. West girls coach Kyle Karnofski said.
Added Dalan: “When I get passes, I am like, ‘This is so open!’ My teammates tell me my face lights up.”
Earlier this winter, Dalan broke Brumfield’s career scoring record, and will leave approaching 1,800 to 2,000 points. She is also the program’s all-time leader in rebounds and blocked shots.
The personal acclaim is nice, but Dalan never aims for that to be a distraction.
“Obviously I have both outside expectations and personal expectations in what I should do offensuvely and defensively,” Dalan said. “But I need to make sure it doesn’t take away from what my teammates can do. I want to make sure what we do benefits them more than it benefits me.”
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