It appears as if the Lady Tomahawks are underdogs and highly rated to the right people.

Still not getting any respect from the polls, Marysville-Pilchuck got a boost of confidence Sunday when it was selected as one of the better teams not coming in with a district title.

There is no other way to explain why so many top teams are represented in places other than M-P’s immediate bracket placement.

On the other side of things, the Tommies still aren’t voted in any top 10 poll, despite having wins over the two Western Conference teams — Edmonds-Woodway (No. 9) and Lake Stevens (No. 10) — that were represented.

By rankings alone, however, the Lady Tomahawks hoops team had to realize their good fortune on Sunday.

Looking at the class 4A state tournament bracket, nine of the top 10 teams made it in — and only four of those teams are on Marysville-Pilchuck’s side of the bracket.

While having five on one side and four on the other isn’t much of an advantage, it comes down to a quality-versus-quantity debate.

Julie Martin’s girls’ earliest chance of seeing a top-four team would be in the in the semifinal game.

That is quite a draw, considering the state’s only undefeated school, No. 1 Auburn Riverside (22-0) begins the tournament against No. 9 Edmonds-Woodway and then might have to face No. 3 Federal Way.

Meanwhile, M-P will face Garfield March 3 and the winner or loser of the Moses Lake (NR) and Bellarmine Prep (No. 5) game. It’s a tough road, but it could be a lot tougher.

While seeding and an upset here and there for a conference title can account for such a lopsided bracket, none of that really happened.

The only logical conclusion can be that Marysville has been given a little more credit by the WIAA than by local sports writers and the Associated Press.

While rankings have been a motivational tool and a source of frustration for the Tomahawks at points this season, I’m sure none of the girls are complaining about it now.