If ever a team could claim a moral victory following the outcome of a game, it is Hockinson, a southwest Washington school located between Vancouver and Battle Ground.

Hockinson Hawks (Hockinson)

Hockinson lost to Camas 72-71 after the Hawks were hit with a technical foul with one second remaining when several students stormed the floor to celebrate an apparent victory.

Hockinson took a 71-70 lead with one second remaining when Alan Haagen hit three throws, the result of being fouled on a 3-point shooting attempt. A handful of Hockinson students, forgetting the game wasn’t finished, ran from the bleachers to about 12 feet onto the floor to celebrate.

The Hawks were assessed a technical foul. Camas’ Jordan Lenard hit two free throws to give the Papermakers a stunning victory.

Hockinson coach Trevor Person said he had empathy for his team and the students. His players “were bummed and frustrated. It was a fun and entertaining game. They did what they had to do to win the game. To have an outside situation dictate the outcome was a little disappointing. I wanted our players to have the feeling of what it’s like to win a game like that.”

Person said after talking to his team in the locker room, he returned to the floor to talk to the students who rushed the floor.

“I don’t know if they were crying or not, but their heads were in their hands. I told the student section thank you. I didn’t want that situation to dictate how they cheer for us,” Person said. “Our crowd was phenomenal. I don’t want to fault an exciting student section.”

Nor did Person blame the officials crew for calling the technical.

“I’ve never seen that played called. I don’t want say anything negative about what they called. They did a phenomenal job of calling the game,” Person said.

Hockinson is 4-2, with an asterisk.

“I’m never a moral victory guy,” Person said. “I told the boys, we’re trying to take steps toward our vision. We did a lot of the right things.”

Twitter: @nickdaschel