Ilwaco coach Justin Russel, right, shares his thoughts with Forks coach Rick Gooding after a very physical game that became contentious at times.

ILWACO — The Ilwaco boys basketball team (2-1) dropped a 60-47 league decision to the Forks Spartans (4-0) on Friday, May 7 in Ilwaco.

It was the home opener for the Fishermen, who notched decisive wins over South Bend (74-42) and Raymond (74-50) to start the season but faced a stiffer test against the Spartans.

Ilwaco started strong against the Spartans, who were led by Trey Baysinger with a team-high 19 points.

A Beckett Turner three-pointer gave Ilwaco a 15-12 advantage after the first quarter.

Both teams exchanged leads in the second quarter, with Forks employing a full-court press forcing Ilwaco into some turnovers to take a 31-24 Forks lead into halftime.

Ilwaco opened the second half cold and didn’t score until the 3:35 mark following a Beckett Turner jumper, but Forks had already built a sizeable 12-point lead at that point (39-27).

In the fourth quarter the Forks lead swelled to 51-36 before the Fishermen made one final run.

Ilwaco would cut the lead to 42-53 with 2:20 to play after two foul shots guard Jaden Turner, but it was the closest they would come.

The Spartans would return to Forks with a 60-47 victory despite a game-high 20 points from Ilwaco junior Jaden Turner.