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About Appeal tribune. (Silverton, Or.) 1999-current | View Entire Issue (March 7, 2018)
Appeal Tribune ❚ WEDNESDAY, MARCH 7, 2018 ❚ 1B Sports HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL Kennedy girls golden Trojans capture their second basketball crown in 3 years HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL Silverton seniors showcase skillset Coach: Roth, McCarty are ‘lions’ for team Gary Horowitz Salem Statesman Journal USA TODAY NETWORK Kennedy defeated Monroe 53-40 in the 2A state championship game on Saturday. PHOTOS BY PETE MARTINI/STATESMAN JOURNAL Pete Martini Salem Statesman Journal USA TODAY NETWORK PENDLETON – Kaylin Cantu and Hannah Arritola are best friends, and they just completed quite a journey to- gether. The two seniors helped the Kennedy girls basketball team beat Monroe 53- 40 on Saturday to capture the OSAA Class 2A state championship, just as they did as sophomores in 2016. “We’ve been working hard all year, waiting for this moment because it’s our senior year,” said Cantu, who scored a team-high 12 points. “We’ve been No. 1 all year, so we just wanted to finish it out and go out on top.” Cantu and Arritola were the only re- maining starters from the 2016 title team, and this season, they helped the Trojans finish a 29-1 season, including unbeaten against Class 2A competition. In fact, Kennedy’s only loss of the season came against Dayton, which competed late Saturday night in the Class 3A state championship game. “We just felt so motivated this year because of our (third-place) finish last year,” said Arritola, who seven points and nine rebounds. “This is a totally different team from two years ago. We had to grow a lot last year, and then just improve this year,” she said. Kennedy’s recent success was a long time coming for co-head coaches Kerry and Peter Hall. Years ago, when Regis was in the midst of winning five consecutive state championships from 2010-14, Peter Hall said that it was time for Kennedy to take the next step. “They made a blueprint for our suc- cess — defense first, and just be an ab- solute pest on the court,” Peter Hall said. “When they won those five titles, we sat back, being in their league, and said ‘Do we want to get to that point, and do the kids want to meet us there?’ And they said absolutely. And that’s when that foundation was laid. “The journey has just been so amaz- ing,” Peter Hall added. “A journey of a lifetime.” Kerry and Peter Hall have built a win- ning tradition at Kennedy, with consis- tent play on the biggest stage — the Tro- jans have won eight of their past nine state tournament games, resulting in two championships and a third-place finish. Kerry Hall recalls a moment midway through this season where she thought it was possible for Kennedy to reach the top again. And that moment came rush- ing back to her as the final seconds ticked off the clock Saturday. “There was a point midway through the season, I was having a conversation with Hannah, and we both got emotion- al, and I said, ‘If you keep working hard, you’re going to do it,’” Kerry Hall said. “Honestly, when the time was ticking down there, in my brain I was thinking, ‘I told you so.’ That’s a good feeling to have.” Peter Hall said that the program’s re- SILVERTON – Silverton girls bas- ketball coach Tal Wold knew he would build the 2017-18 team around senior co-captains Maggie Roth and Brooke McCarty. After all, they were the only re- turning varsity players and had been starters since their freshman year. Add their experience playing on the Foxes’ unbeaten state champion- ship team of 2016, and on last sea- son’s squad that lost in the state championship game, and Wold had a strong foundation in place. “Those two girls are lions. They're gonna lead us," Wold said after Fri- day’s 40-24 victory over Hermiston in the first round of the Class 5A state playoffs at Silverton High School. “The girls follow and work hard with them. They love playing with them." No. 5 seed Silverton (20-5) opens state tournament play Tuesday with a quarterfinal matchup against No. 4 seed Springfield (21-3). Tip-off is set for 3:15 p.m. at Gill Coliseum in Cor- vallis. McCarty acknowledged that reaching the state tournament for a fourth consecutive year with so many first-year varsity players was hardly a lock when the team gathered for summer league. “If you would have seen us first game of summer ball, you would have been like, ‘oh gosh,’” McCarty said with a smile. Roth also recognized that Silver- ton’s state tournament streak was in See SENIORS, Page 2B Silverton’s Maggie Roth drives during a first-round playoff game against Hermiston at Silverton High School. Roth has been a proven powerhouse for the team. Kennedy co-head coach Kerry Hall holds the net after the Trojans won the OSAA Class 2A girls basketball state championship. MOLLY J. SMITH/STATESMAN JOURNAL Silverton coach named Mid-Valley Coach of the Year CHRISTENA BROOKS/ SPECIAL TO THE APPEAL TRIBUNE Here, the Kennedy's girls basketball team warms up before the game. cent success is not just about the hard- ware that the Trojans bring back from Pendleton, it’s also about the strength of the Mt. Angel community. “Relationships have been cemented. The bond that we have with this group, and the parents,” Peter Hall said. “I grew up with them, I’ve known them my whole life. And now I’m coaching their kids. So we just have an absolute bond with this community. This group is re- lentless.” Silverton High School boys bas- ketball coach Jamie McCarty is given a Mid-Valley Coach of the Year award by Silver Falls School District admin- istrator Steve Nielsen. McCarty is also principal at Victor Point School, so three former Vikings who are on this year’s varsity team, joined the celebration at an assembly March 2. Seated, they are Spencer Clements, Levi Nielsen and Cade Roth. Roth is this year’s Player of the Year.