Page 2B
SPORTS
East Oregonian
Saturday, March 4, 2017
2A State Tournament Roundup
Wolverines shoot past Pioneers, into state finals
Santiam boys beat
league foe, No. 1 seed
Western Mennonite
East Oregonian
PENDLETON — Playing in its
first final bracket since 1997, No.
4 Santiam proved experience is
over-rated when it shot down No. 1
Western Mennonite and its plethora
of tournament veterans 53-33 in the
2A basketball semifinals on Friday
afternoon at Pendleton Convention
Center.
Santiam (23-4), which evened
the season series with the Tri-River
Conference champions at 2-2 with
the win, came out hot hitting three
3-pointers in the first quarter, never
trailed, and went on a 10-2 run to
start the fourth quarter that made it a
43-24 lead when Julian Downey hit a
triple with 5:31 left to play.
Santiam made its first six shots
in the fourth quarter and pushed the
lead to its largest margin at 51-26
when Downey converted a pair of
free throws with 2:07 left.
The Wolverines shot 17-for-36
(47.2 percent) for the game and
9-for-13 (69.2 percent) in the second
half. Downey score 10 of his team-
high 16 points after halftime and
also had 10 rebounds for the double-
double.
Austin Fawcett added 13 points,
and a strong defensive effort limited
the Pioneers’ starting five to just 16
points total.
Western Mennonite (25-6) shot
13-for-47 (27.7 percent) included
2-for-20 from three-point range.
Payton Richardson had a team-
high nine points, and Alex Nicoli
added seven points to go with three
steals.
Santiam reached the state final for
the first time since 1976, and won its
only title in 1974 in Class A.
The Wolverines will tip off
against No. 2 Stanfield on Saturday
at 8:30 p.m. at the convention center.
The Pioneers are guaranteed their
11th straight state trophy and will
play No. 6 Life Christian for 3rd/5th
place starting at 3:15 p.m. at the
convention center.
———
SHS
11 12 10 20 — 53
WM
8 5
9 11 — 33
SANTIAM — Ju. Downey 16, A. Fawcett 13, Jo.
Downey 8, J. Fawcett 7, N. Butler 7, J. Ballard 2, R. Nicot,
A. Casner, D. Whitmire.
WESTERN MENNONITE — P. Richardson 9, J. Wil-
liams 8, A. Nicoli 7, S. Hess 4, I. Rush 2, M. Hull 2, K. Hull
1, D. Berkey, C. Roth, J. Roth, H. Martin, C. Nofziger.
3-pointers — SHS 7; WM 2. Free throws — SHS 12-
16; WM 5-8. Fouls — SHS 11; WM 15. Fouled out — P.
Richardson (WM).
VERNONIA 47, IMBLER
36 — At Pendleton, a three-pointer
by Brett Elliott gave No. 9 Vernonia
its first lead at 27-25 with 6:12 left
in the third quarter, and the Loggers
held off No. 5 Imbler to earn a spot
in the consolation finals on Saturday
where they’ll play for 4th/6th.
Imbler (18-4) tied the score one
last time at 31-31 on a layup by
Brandon McGilvray with 1:04 left in
the third, but Clay Sullivan drained
a three-pointer with two second left
in the stanza to put Vernonia (23-6)
back up for good.
Sullivan finished with a game-
high 18 points on 7-of-13 shooting
and five steals, and Elliott added 11
points for the Loggers, which shot
17-for-43 (39.5 percent) from the
field.
McGilvray scored 14 points to
with three steals to lead Imbler,
Trayse Riggle added 10 points and
three steals, and Hunter VanLeuven
pulled in 13 rebounds.
A VanLeuven jumper pulled
Imbler within one to start the fourth
quarter, but Vernonia answered with
a three by Sullivan, and another by
Tristan Adams to make it 40-33.
Imbler missed its next five shots
and a jump shot by Luke McCallum
pushed the lead to 42-33 with 2:10
to play.
Vernonia, last season’s cham-
pion, will play 2A newcomer No. 3
Columbia Christian at 10:45 a.m. at
the convention center.
———
VHS
7 16 11 13 — 47
IHS
17 8
6
5 — 36
VERNONIA — C. Sullivan 18, B. Elliott 11, T. Adams
9, L. McCallum 6, B. Clark 3, B. Jones, K. Sullivan, C.
Tolonen, J. Handegard, G. Harral, A. Vazquez.
IMBLER — B. McGilvray 14, T. Riggle 10, H. VanLeuven
Both games are at the convention
center.
———
6, M. Whitaker 4, R. Mullarkey 2, G. Tritchka, R. Patter-
son, G. Smith, C. Breshears, C. Gorham, A. Knife, W.
McDonald.
3-pointers — VHS 6; IHS 2. Free throws — VHS 7-16;
IHS 4-5. Fouls — VHS 11; IHS 16.
COLUMBIA CHRISTIAN 65,
OAKRIDGE 45 — At Pendleton,
No. 3 Columbia Christian assured
itself a state trophy in its first season
playing at Class 2A as it eliminated
No. 7 Oakridge in their consolation
semifinal on Saturday morning at
Pendleton Convention Center.
Due to a technical error, stats were
not available from the game.
Columbia Christian (25-3),
which was runner-up at Class 1A
last season, will face last season’s
2A champion Vernonia for 4th/6th
place on Saturday at 10:45 a.m. at
the convention center.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
WESTERN MENNONITE 52,
KENNEDY 37 — At Pendleton, the
No. 2 Pioneers opened their semi-
final game on a 7-0 run and made
sure the girls’ 2A bracket will have a
new champion by beating defending
champs No. 3 Kennedy for the third
time this season.
Madison Hull was three points
from a 2A tournament record with
35 on 7-of-14 shooting and 18-of-20
free throw shooting. She also had 13
points and four assists.
Annika Hess added 12 points and
seven rebounds, and the Pioneers
(20-7) turned the ball over just nine
times while winning the rebounding
battle 35-30.
Molly Jaeger scored eight points
to pace Kennedy (16-11), and Kaylee
Brown added seven points and five
rebounds off the bench.
Western Mennonite never trailed
and the game was never tied, but the
Pioneers didn’t pull away for good
until the fourth quarter when a three-
pointer by Hess capped a 10-2 run
to make it 43-31 with 4:30 to play.
The lead never dropped back below
double digits from there.
Western Mennonite will face No.
1 Monroe in the championship on
Saturday at 6:30 p.m. Kennedy will
play Imbler for 3rd/5th at 1:30 p.m.
KHS
9 10 10
8 — 37
WM
19 5
9 19 — 52
KENNEDY — M. Jaeger 8, H. Arritola 7, K. Brown 7, K.
Cantu 6, K. Kleinschmit 4, S. Carley 3, C. Traeger 2, A.
Frey, I. Gomez, Y. Gomez.
WESTERN MENNONITE — M. Hull 35, A. Hess 12, P.
Hopper 5, L. Foster, M. Choi.
3-pointers — KHS 1; WM 7. Free throws — KHS 8-15;
WM 23-32. Fouls — KHS 23; WM 11. Fouled out — H.
Arritola (KHS).
MONROE 41, IMBLER 28 —
At Pendleton, No. 1 Monroe closed
on a 10-2 run to punch its ticket to the
2A state finals on Friday afternoon
at Pendleton Convention Center,
sending No. 5 Imbler into the third-
place game.
It’ll be the first state title the
Dragons (28-0) have played for
in girls basketball, and they made
it there despite a lower field-goal
percentage and 10 fewer rebounds
than the Panthers (16-7). They made
up for it on defense, forcing Imbler
into 28 turnovers led by the efforts
of Kyndal Martin (4 steals) and
Madison Ballard (3 steals).
Both teams shot below 30 percent
from the field, but the Dragons
drained six threes and only turned
the ball over 10 times while the
Panthers made just eight shots total
in the game.
Ballard finished with 19 points,
and Rose Gwillim pulled in 10
rebounds.
Imbler was led by Lexee
Robertson with nine points and 10
rebounds, and Jacobi Rudd had 11
rebounds.
Monroe never trailed as Ballard
hit two three-pointers in the first 3:08
to pace a 7-1 start. Imbler pulled
within three at 10-7 when Kailey
Smith hit a shot with 5:11 left before
halftime, but the Dragons closed the
half on a 10-1 run with inside baskets
by Peyton Greene and Ballard, and a
three-pointer by Martin.
The closest Imbler came in the
second half was after Rudd scored
in the paint to make it 25-21 at the
end of the third quarter. A pair of free
throws from Martin made it 29-21
with 5:44 to play.
Monroe will play No. 2 Western
Mennonite in the championship on
Saturday at 6:30 p.m. at the conven-
tion center. Imbler will play No. 3
Kennedy for 3rd-5th place at 1:30
p.m.
———
IHS
4 4 13
7 — 28
MHS
10 10
5 16 — 41
IMBLER — L. Robertson 9, K. Stirewalt 7, K. Smith 5,
J. Rudd 3, H. Kilpatrick 3, C. McGinness 1, M. Hassan.
MONROE — M. Ballard 19, P. Greene 5, R. Gwillim 5,
K. Martin 5, E. Stahl 4, C. Knaggs 3, C. May, P. Bodl, D.
Langley, M. Lopez.
3-pointers — IHS 0; MHS 6. Free throws — IHS 12-21;
MHS 13-19. Fouls — IHS 19; MHS 15. Fouled out — J.
Rudd (IHS).
EAST LINN CHRISTIAN 45,
GRANT UNION 29 — At Pend-
leton, the Eagles opened the game
shooting 4-for-6 and scored seven
points off turnovers to take an early
lead they never gave up in Friday’s
consolation semifinals at Pendleton
High School.
No. 7 East Linn Christian (17-11)
shot 10-for-22 (45.5 percent) from
the field in the first half and led by
as many as 18 in the second half as
No. 11 Grant Union (15-8) never got
dialed in.
East Linn’s shooting cooled to
15-for-42 (35.7 percent) by game’s
end, but the Prospectors managed
just 11-for-52 (21.2 percent) that
included a 2-for-22 (9.1 percent)
behind the three-point arc.
Sydney Nichol paced the Eagles
with 21 points, 10 rebounds and three
steals, Grace Wilson added 10 points
and eight rebounds, and McKayla
Horner had eight points to go with
13 boards. East Linn out-rebounded
Grant Union 44-32.
The Pros were paced by Mariah
Moulton with 14 points, and Madi
McKrola added eight points and 10
rebounds.
East Linn will play Regis in the
consolation final for 4th/6th place
on Saturday at 9 a.m. at Pendleton
Convention Center.
———
GU
5 7
7 10 — 29
ELC
18 8
8 11 — 45
GRANT UNION — M. Moulton 14, M. McKrola 8,
J. Rude 3, T. Hutchison 2, K. Wright 1, M. Smith 1, H.
Wright, M. Culley, M. Wright, F. Weaver, D. Girvin, W.
McClellan.
EAST LINN CHRISTIAN — S. Nichol 21, G. Wilson 10,
M. Horner 8, R. Busek 6, M. Christenson, A. Cade, M.
Fillis, A. Medford, M. Wilson.
3-pointers — GU 2; ELC 2. Free throws — GU 5-8;
ELC 13-21. Fouls — GU 14, ELC 11.
BUCKS: Will head to Corvallis for Final 8
GIRLS: Plagued by turnovers in first half
Continued from 1B
Continued from 1B
to take the final shot with the
game tied at 65-65.
But then with approx-
imately 10 seconds left,
Newsom got his hand on
the ball and forced it away
from the Spartan player and
while both players dove for
the ball, Newsom’s height
and wing span gave him the
advantage, possessing the
ball and then somehow flip-
ping it down to a wide-open
Stuvland.
“Tyler, man, the way he
got on the floor there, he
showed his improvement on
that one play,” Pendleton’s
Caden Smith said. “I’m so
happy for my guys right
now.”
And speaking of Smith,
the Buckaroos had to play
the second overtime session
and the final minute of the
first overtime without Smith
on the floor, who fouled out
with 23 points. While the
Buckaroos surely missed
Smith’s ability to create
shots and overall skill, to
be able to pull out the win
showed the team’s true
character.
“We’ve stressed all year
that Caden’s the engine that
drives us, but we have so
many other parts that are
capable,” Tedder said. “To
see guys step up and have
no lapse in energy, in confi-
dence, it was pretty special.”
Pendleton appeared to
be on its way to an easier
victory midway through
the fourth quarter, as it led
Corvallis 49-39 with 3:46
left to play. But then the
Spartans found a rhythm
from deep and made three
straight 3-pointers to slowly
chip away while Pendleton’s
offense went cold.
The Buckaroos then were
up 54-52 with 28.7 seconds
left and Smith went to the
free throw line looking to
nearly ice the game. But
then Smith bricked both free
throws and gave Corvallis a
chance to tie, which they did
on a free-throw line jumper
by Derek Osenga to send the
game to overtime.
Then in the first overtime,
Pendleton again started to
pull away, holding a 60-55
lead with 1:05 left. But
free throws again cost the
Buckaroos a chance to ice
the game, and the Spartans’
Dyshawn Hobson, who led
Corvallis with 18 points,
nailed a 3-pointer from the
top of the key to knot the
offensive work ethic, No.
8 seed Pendleton was not
able to keep up with the No.
9 seed Kingsmen as Rex
Putnam pulled away for a
55-38 victory at Warberg
Court.
“We weren’t at 100
percent obviously,” Pend-
leton coach Kevin Porter
said. “Not many teams are at
100 percent at this point, but
not many teams have to go
without an all-league player
like Kalan. The score didn’t
go our way, but nobody can
take away the season we
had.”
Putnam (18-7) scored
the first basket of the game
right off the opening tip, but
Pendleton (12-8) answered
back as Haley Greb putback
her own miss to tie the
game at 2-2 with 7:00 left
to play. But from that point
on, Putnam smothered
Pendleton on the defensive
end of the floor and over-
whelmed them on offense
and continuously built up its
lead through the rest of the
game.
Turnovers plagued Pend-
leton early in the first half,
as the Buckaroos turned
the ball over six times in
their first seven possessions
and at the 5:05 mark of the
second quarter the Bucks
Pendleton’s
Johnny Stu-
vland (14)
goes up for
a shot over
Matthew
Davis (21)
and Hans
Ellenson
(23), of
Corvallis,
Friday in
a 5A state
champi-
onship
quarterfinal
game at
Warberg
Court.
Staff photo
by Kathy Aney
game at 63-63 and send it to
the second overtime.
“Man, we won that game
about four times, but we also
lost it about eight times,”
Tedder said.
Things
got
chippy
between the two teams in
the second OT, as following
Stuvland’s
breakaway
lay-in, Hobson raced down
the floor and pulled up just
inside half-court to attempt
a last-second shot. He was
fouled on the play, but after a
quick discussion the referees
determined the foul was
before the shot and therefore
Hobson would be awarded
two free throws instead of
three.
Corvallis’ coach was
upset with the decision and
was called for a technical
foul, which set up Stuvland’s
game-winning free throws.
“We just find a way,”
Tedder said of his team’s
effort. “We’re resilent and
we have trust in eachother
and we stay together. I’m
pretty humbled and proud to
be a part of this group and it
was pretty cool to watch.”
Pendleton will head to
Corvallis for the Final 8 of
the 5A state tournament next
week, where it will take on
the No. 2 seed Churchill on
Wednesday at 8:15 p.m. at
Oregon State University’s
Gill Coliseum.
————
CHS
12 8 15 19 9 4 —
67
PHS
14 16 10 14 9 6 —
69
CORVALLIS — D. Hobson 18, M. Davis
15, H. Ellenson 11, G. Sather 9, C. Hixson
6, D. Osenga 4, L. Fulford 4, E. Reab.
PENDLETON — C. Smith 23, J. Stuvland
17, W. Morris 9, T. Newsom 8, S. Jerome 6,
K. Curtis 3, J. Szumski 2, R. Russell 1.
3-pointers — CHS 8, PHS 3. Free throws
— CHS 15-17, PHS 28-48. Fouls — CHS
32, PHS 17. Fouled out — M. Davis, H.
Ellenson, C. Hixson (CHS); C. Smith (PHS).
————
Contact Eric at esinger@
eastoregonian.com
or
541-966-0839. Follow him
on Twitter @ByEricSinger.
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had 13 turnovers and a mere
12 shot attempts.
“The film we had (of
Putnam), nobody tried to
pressure them so we thought
we could,” Porter said. “We
thought they were slower
than they really were, so
in this case we weren’t
prepared for their speed.
But it is what it is, they won,
they beat us.”
Haley Greb led Pend-
leton with eight points and
both Katie Bradt and Hunter
Kiele had six points apiece
to pace Pendleton. Porter
said that Bradt’s perfor-
mance was one that stood
out for him in the game.
“Katie did an outstanding
job for us,” he said. “She
had to play a ton of minutes
that she’s not used to playing
and I’m extremely proud of
her. That’s great experience
for a sophomore to get.”
After shooting just 5-20
(25 percent) from the floor
in the first half which led to
a 33-11 deficit at the break,
the Buckaroos did clean
things up in the second half
and actually outscored the
Kingsmen 27-22 in that
span. Pendleton shot 10-25
(40 percent) in the half and
held the Kingsmen to 8-24
(33 percent) and forced
seven turnovers.
Margaret Batz led Rex
Putnam with 12 points,
Megan Spaulding had 11
and both Haley Brandel and
Abigail Paul contributed 10
points apiece for the King-
smen.
The game marked the
end of the road for Pendle-
ton’s three seniors of Greb,
Tatum Fell and Kale’a
Broker, and Porter said that
he believes this group will
be remembered for as long
as he coaches the Bucks.
“One of the things we
had as a team goal this year
was to make girls basketball
important in Pendleton,” he
said. “And I think part of
accomplishing that goal is
senior leadership, and these
girls had it. One starts (Greb),
the other two are reserves ...
you hope the younger kids
learn something from their
leadership whether it’s being
a good bench teammate.
“You can see a lot of
your team culture from the
kids not in the game, and
sometimes that’s two seniors
there and it’s pretty hard for
a kid to set aside their own
goals for a team and these
girls did that.”
————
RP
19 14 12 10 — 55
PHS
6 5 12 15 — 38
REX PUTNAM — M. Batz 12, M.
Spaulding 11, H. Brandel 10, A. Paul 10, K.
Kremers 9, E. Whittington 4.
PENDLETON — H. Greb 8, K. Bradt 6, H.
Kiele 6, H. Porter 4, T. Fell 3, M. Davies 3,
E. Nirschl 3, L. Richards 3, J. Lemberger 2.
3-pointers — RP 2, PHS 2. Free throws
— RP 17-27, PHS 6-8. Fouls — RP 7,
PHS 21.
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