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About Wallowa County chieftain. (Enterprise, Wallowa County, Or.) 1943-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 21, 2018)
A10 Sports wallowa.com February 21, 2018 Wallowa County Chieftain Lady Outlaws go to state Boys wrap up season with loss to Elgin By Steve Tool Wallowa County Chieftain T he Enterprise Lady Outlaws missed the Wapiti league title while the boys fell off their horse with a season-ending defeat against Elgin in district playoffs at La Grande Feb. 16-17. The ladies met Elgin on Friday, defang- ing the Huskies with a 45-31 victory, despite shooting only 28 percent from the field. Gracie Carlsen led the Outlaws with 11 points, shooting 50 percent from the floor with an identical percentage from outside the paint. She was the only Outlaw to sink a three-pointer in the contest. Lexie Gassett and Riley Gray fol- lowed with eight points apiece and Ashlyn Gray put six points through the rim. Karli Bedard hauled down 16 rebounds and denied three Huskies shots while contrib- uting four points for the win. Saturday’s game against Grant Union saw the Outlaws just missing victory against Grant Union, falling 45-37 in a hard-fought battle. The Outlaws were down 29-27 going into the final quarter where they tied the game at one point, only to see it slip away as they scored only 10 compared to the Prospectors’ 16. Poor floor shooting, 29 percent, contributed toward the loss. “We battled ourselves into the same type of deal as when Grant Union played here,” Coach Mike Crawford said. “We did everything we could to get us there, every- thing but make the baskets.” He added that several key turnovers also helped turn the tide against the Outlaws. Carlsen and Riley Gray led the scor- ing with 11 points each while Ashlyn Gray again knocked six points in the bucket and stuffed two Grant Union shots. Reece Christman pulled down 11 rebounds for the cause, and Riley Gray stuffed two Prospec- tor’s shots. The ladies head to Oakland on Feb. 23 for their first state playoff game. Outlaw boys The boys won two of three over last week with a critical Friday loss to Elgin blowing their chances at a state playoff berth. The Outlaws met up with Union on Feb. 13, prevailing in an exciting 56-54 overtime victory over the Bobcats. The Elgin game saw the boys hand over the victory on a silver platter to the Hus- kies. The Outlaws came up on the losing end of a 40-35 score due to a lack of poise in the clutch. “It was a little disappointing,” Coach Larry Wells said. “It was obviously a key game for us to get into state.” The team held a 12-point halftime lead over Elgin, 25-13. According to Coach Wells, the team decided to hold with their game plan at the break, but only scored 10 more points the remainder of the game, six points in the third quarter and four in the fourth. He added that it had been the team intention to hold Elgin to 40 points, but the lack of offense was a factor. Several key Outlaws players failed to deliver from the floor. Brett Greenshields led the scoring with 12 while Dylan Marr score eight. No other player had more than five points, The final Outlaws game on Saturday was a little brighter as the boys ended the season with a 52-47 victory in a second meeting with Union. Jimmy Wells led the scoring with 24 points after scoring only two against Elgin. Chris Bathke had his best game of the sea- ABOVE: Lady Out- law Karli Bedard ties it up with Elgin’s Sarah Becker during Friday’s matchup in district play at La Grande High School. LEFT: Outlaw senior Brycen Locke works the ball as Elgin’s Ian Smith makes a defensive move on his left during Fri- day’s district basket- ball tournament ac- tion in La Grande. Paul Wahl/Chieftain son, scoring nine and playing excellent defense and team ball. “We executed everything that we needed to and made adjustments where we needed to,” Wells said. “We played team basketball in the final chapter for these seniors.” The boys ended their season with a 3-5 Wapiti League record, finishing third, while compiling a 9-13 record overall. Eagles teams advance to state playoffs Both finish third in districts By Steve Tool Wallowa County Chieftain The boys and girls Eagles team went 2-3 over the weekend in district basketball play in Baker City, and both also fell to arch-rival Powder Valley. Both teams clinched third place in the Old Oregon League and will go on to compete at state. The lady Eagles played masterful ball in their 60-30 rout of Echo Feb. 14. Coach Lance Homan said that the team played a complete game with all the ladies stepping up from the begin- ning to the end. “We had a very balanced attack and really played well defensively with 17 steals and creating 34 turn- overs,” he said. Madelyn Nelson and Sabrina Albee flew high over the scoring with 15 points each while teammate Alexis Sykora knocked in 12 and brought in five boards. Friday’s game saw the Eagles girls nearly put Powder Valley under despite the 60-46 score, with the ladies cutting the lead to five in the fourth quarter but unable to get over the hump. “Powder is a very tough team and a tough matchup for us, but I was proud of how our girls fought,” he said. Homan noted the second half play of Sykora in the loss. The JCS senior knocked in 21 of the team’s 46 points while hauling in 10 rebounds in a spar- kling effort. Albee contributed 13 to the battle. The ladies put in a herculean defen- sive effort in a 52-38 victory over Griswold Feb. 17. The Eagles forced 29 turnovers in the battle. The team’s offense sputtered for a time but Sykora and Albee put on amazing fourth-quar- ter performances for the victory. Paul Wahl/Chieftain Paul Wahl/Chieftain Joseph’s Mason Ferre finds himself in pursuit of a Cove player while teammate Kade Kilgore keeps up during Thursday’s dis- trict tournament action in Baker City. Joseph’s Haley Miller looks to the basket with two Echo players reaching in during Thursday’s nights district tournament play in Baker City. “Our kids played their hearts out for the win,” Homan said. “Griswold is a tough team to play. They were focused and really wanted the get the third spot in our district and make it to state.” Sykora led the scoring with 19 while Albee knocked in a 17-point effort. Nelson contributed seven points to the total. The ladies play at Sherman Feb. 20. Eagle boys The boys met Cove on Thursday coming away with a 44-35 victory. The Eagles looked for an easy cruise after ending the first quarter with a 16-2 lead. However, Cove fired back, allow- ing the Eagles only six in the second quarter while scoring eight. Both teams scored 13 in the third quarter with the Eagles’ 12 in the final quar- ter sealing the win. “Every team is playing for their season, and Cove brought everything they could,” Coach Olan Fulfer said. “They made everything tough.” In one of his best games of the season, junior Tyler Homan knocked at the door with 15 points, three steals and four rebounds. Post Cae- van Murray sailed in with 11 points and seven rebounds while Chase Murray brought eight points to the table. Fulfer also noted the defensive wizardry of freshman Mason Ferre. “His whole weekend was pretty amazing,” Fulfer said. Friday was the Powder Valley matchup. For much of the game, it looked like the Eagles would tri- umph. They trailed by one after the first and went into the half, 27-25. The Eagles went cold in the third, scoring only five points and rallied in the fourth, pulling within two late in the game. Two turnovers and a Bad- gers three-pointer sealed the deal, Joseph coming up just short, 49-43. “It was a tough battle,” Fulfer said. “We were so close to winning the district title.” Caevan Murray led the charge with 18 points and nine rebounds “We’ve come to expect that he’ll have a great game for us,” Fulfer said. Chase Murray reeled in 13 while Trey Wandschneider knocked seven through the hoop. In Saturday’s game against Wal- lowa, the Eagles were flat until the fourth quarter and after a pep talk from Fulfer, the Eagles won going away, 42-31. Chase Murray led the Eagles with 16 while Wandschneider chipped in another seven points. The Eagles compete Feb. 21 at Condon/Wheeler.
