SPOKANE VALLEY - Close, but not close enough.

Jamie Weisner's jumper from the foul line rimmed out at the buzzer as the Metro team made up of players from the Greater Spokane League defeated the Region team (players from Idaho and the rest of Eastern Washington) 80-79 in the 19th annual Jack Blair Memorial girls basketball all-star classic on Monday at University High.

Brooke Gallaway of Central Valley was fouled by the Region's Chelsea Waters of Lewiston with five seconds remaining. Gallaway, who will attend Santa Clara in the fall, made her second foul shot to give Metro an 80-79 lead.

It was the Metro's 18th win in the 19 games in the classic.

"I thought it was a well-played game," Region coach Dale Poffenroth said. "We had some down spots where we didn't score, but they didn't either."

The Region closed the first half on a 19-4 run to tie the game at 40 and found themselves down 75-70 with a little over three minutes remaining before Weisner hit a pair of free throws to tie the game at 77 with 1:33 remaining.

"All of our kids stepped up and did some good things," said Poffenroth, the longtime Coeur d'Alene High coach. "It was a tough break at the end."

Post Falls post Danielle Failor had eight points in her first Jack Blair game.

"It was tons of fun," Failor said. "Even though we lost, it was a really good experience to play against some talented players. It was really different playing with Chelsea (Waters of Lewiston). I got a whole new perspective on playing because I'm usually the tallest player on the court."

Hallie Gennett of University scored 14 points and may be transferring to Post Falls in the fall.

"I'm really excited," Failor said. "She's one of my best friends and I hope she gets approved."

Kendalyn Brainard of Coeur d'Alene had seven points in her third Blair game for the Region.

"It was an exciting game," Brainard said. "We really wanted to win and had a lot of motivation to do so, but you can't win them all."

Weisner was named Most Inspirational after scoring 18 points for the Region. She'll continue her career at Oregon State in the fall.

"I'd played with her before," said Brainard of Weisner. "It was a lot of fun to play with those seniors like Jamie and Chelsea - and especially Erin (Legel). It was a great experience to get to play with them again."

Gonzaga Prep standout and Montana State signee Lindsay Stockton was named the game's MVP after scoring 16 points.

"That was about as close as you can get," Metro coach Freddie Rehkow said. "Once we got the lead, I told our kids to be patient. We had to pull together and play smart."

Region 40 39 - 79

Metro 40 40 - 80

REGION - Karlee Wilson (Lewiston) 0, Caelyn Orlandi (Coeur d'Alene) 3, Chelsea Waters (Lewiston) 14, Brooke Litalien (Post Falls) 6, Erin Legel (Coeur d'Alene) 7, Jamie Weisner (Clarkston) 18, Kendalyn Brainard (Coeur d'Alene) 7, Chandler Smith (Brewster) 9, Kelsey Moos (Rearden) 2, Danielle Failor (Post Falls) 8, Sydney Williams (Coeur d'Alene) 4.

METRO - Brittney Johnson (Ferris) 0, Kayleigh Valley (University) 7, Hallie Gennett (University) 14, Lindsay Stockton (Gonzaga Prep) 16, Hailey Markam-Patti (North Central) 0, Madison Hovren (Central Valley) 0, Jade Redmon (Mead) 7, Brooke Gallaway (Central Valley) 14, Aleisha Hathaway (Shadle Park) 10, Nakia Arquette (Lewis and Clark) 7.