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B2 Sports Blue Mountain Eagle Wednesday, February 22, 2017 Prospectors end season with two-point OT loss Team finishes fourth at district tournament By Angel Carpenter Blue Mountain Eagle The Grant Union Prospec- tor boys came prepared for the fray with Union at the Feb. 17- 18 Wapiti District Basketball Tournament, but the contest didn’t go their way. The Union Bobcats took the 50-48 win in overtime Friday at Quinn Coliseum at Eastern Oregon University in La Grande. “We knew it was going to be a huge dog fight going in,” said Grant Union head coach Kelsy Wright. “We were ready and prepared. We did a great job offensively and defensively — a great job stopping their top scorers.” The teams split wins in the regular season. “It was a tough match up for us, but we did a great job,” Wright said. “We were down 12 points at one time and came back and tied the score and went into overtime.” The score was 46-46 as the teams went into overtime. Both teams scored two points. The clock was running down, when the Prospectors had a driving opportunity. The ball came out of Pros- pector possession, loose on the floor, with the Bobcats and Prospectors diving for the ball. A foul was called on Grant Union, and with 1.8 seconds left, a Bobcat player hit 2-2 at the free-throw line for the win. Grant Union followed up the next day defeating Elgin 47-26, the game deciding fourth and fifth place in the tournament. Prospector seniors Billy Co- penhaver and Jack Gentis en- tered the contest as starters on the team. “We just had a great time. All the players on my bench had plenty of time,” Wright said. “It was a great experience for the younger kids to get into a playoff game on a big court in front of a lot of people.” Wright said, although he feels they should be advancing to state, he’s looking forward to a bright future with the team. “I’m grateful and I’m bless- ed to have this opportunity to coach these boys,” he said. “I hope I’ve made a difference. I’m happy and pleased with the way the boys played all season long. “The great thing is next year we’re going to be pretty loaded, and I think we have a great chance to become league champions, district champions and state champions.” Grant Union vs. Union Duane Stokes: 17 points Cauy Weaver: 10 Cole Deiter: 8 Ty McDaniel: 7 Zack Deiter: 6 Grant Union vs. Elgin Duane Stokes: 14 (one three-pointer) Cauy Weaver: 5 Cole Deiter: 4 Zack Deiter: 5 (one three-pointer) Ty McDaniel: 5 (one three-pointer) Jack Gentis: 4 (one three-pointer) Jacob Vaughan: 5 Kellen Shelley: 2 Billy Copenhaver: 3 Tiger boys fall to Panthers, 54-46 Team finishes one place out of state contention By Angel Carpenter Blue Mountain Eagle Photos by The Eagle/Angel Carpenter Prairie City Panther head coach Bo Workman gives a pep talk during the second half of Thursday’s district game against Monument/Dayville. Lady Panthers experience thrill of victory and agony of defeat By Angel Carpenter Blue Mountain Eagle Prairie City Lady Panther coach Bo Workman said his team has shown improvement with each game throughout the season. The Panthers were hopeful they would come far enough to reach the state competition, but their season came to a close at the district tournament. The 1A-8 High Desert District Tournament started off right for Prairie City last Thursday when they defeated their cross-county opponents, the Monument/Dayville Ti- gers, 44-30 in Game One. The contest was followed by a 68-20 loss on Friday to the Adrian Antelopes, which entered the tournament as the top seed. With third place and ad- vancement in the state playoffs on the line on Saturday, the Panthers lost 54-47 to the Jor- dan Valley Mustangs. The Panthers faced the the Mustangs three times in the regular season, all three dou- ble-digit losses. This time, Prairie City narrowed the gap to seven points. In the first quarter, it was Jordan Valley 13, Prairie City 12, but that was the closest Prairie City would get as the Mustangs galloped away with the lead. The halftime score was 24- 16. Workman said he was proud of how his team played against Jordan Valley. “My girls came a long ways from day one,” he said. “They were trying to overcome the mental toughness of the top three teams in the league, and I thought they played well.” Prairie City was No. 4 en- tering the tournament and fin- ished fourth. He said Sarah Ennis had a great performance in the game. “Sarah had a great game and a great tournament all the way around,” he said. “We’re going to lose her, and we’re corner’s HOT SH T EEK OF THE W DUANE STOKES School: Grant Union Grade: 11 Parent: Kelly and Lori Stokes Sport: Basketball Position: Point Guard What I like best about my sport: “I like being able to spend time with my friends and my team, doing what I like most.” Coach’s Comment: “He’s such a versatile player. He can dribble and shoot the ball extremely well and always has a great attitude, no matter what circumstance. He’s always a great kid to coach.” -Coach Kelsy Wright going to miss her a lot. She’s a big asset to this team.” He added he was happy with his team’s effort in the game. “I’m proud of how they played tonight. They fought and dug deep,” he said. The tournament winners were the Crane Mustangs, which beat Adrian in the championship game. The Prairie City girls won the Sportsmanship Award, and Brianna Zweygardt and Megan Camarena were recog- nized as High Desert League Scholar Athletes. High Desert League All-Tournament selections Second team: Brianna Zweygardt and Cassie Hire Prairie City vs. Monument/ Dayville Brianna Zweygardt: 14 points (one three-pointer) Sarah Ennis: 12 (two three-pointers) Cassie Hire: 11 (one three-pointer, 6-9 free-throws) Emily Ennis: 3 Hailee Wall: 2 Megan Camarena: 2 Prairie City vs. Jordan Valley Cassie Hire: 20 Sarah Ennis: 10 Emily Ennis: 7 Hailee Wall: 6 Brianna Zweygardt: 4 A man wakes up in the morning after sleeping on an ADVERTISED BED, in ADVERTISED PAJAMAS. He will bathe in an ADVERTISED TUB, shave with an ADVERTISED RAZOR, have a breakfast of ADVERTISED JUICE, cereal and toast, toasted in an ADVERTISED TOASTER, put on ADVERTISED CLOTHES and glance at his ADVERTISED WATCH. He’ll ride to work in his ADVERTISED CAR, sit at an ADVERTISED DESK and write with an ADVERTISED PEN. Yet this person hesitates to advertise, saying that advertising doesn’t pay. Finally, when his non-advertised business is going under, HE’LL ADVERTISE IT FOR SALE. Then it’s too late. Advertising is an investment, not an expense. Think about it! Blue Mountain Eagle MyEagleNews.com 100 E. Main • Stoplight in John Day 541-792-0425 05315 Monument/Dayville vs. Prairie City Hayden Schafer: 14 (three three-pointers) Tanner Walczyk: 10 (three-three-pointers) Cody Kluser: 9 (3-6 free throws) John Ramirez: 5 (one three-pointer) Drew Wilburn: 4 GW Clark: 3 (3-6 free throws) Gabe Walker: 1 Monument/Dayville vs. Adrian Hayden Schafer: 13 (three three-pointers) John Ramirez: 6 Drew Wilburn: 6 Cody Kluser: 6 Tanner Walczyk: 3 (one three-pointer) The Eagle/Angel Carpenter Prairie City Panther Brianna Zwegardt (20) goes up to score in the district game against Monument/Dayville. Zwegardt led the team with 14 points. AND THEY SAY ADVERTISING DOESN’T WORK? DON’T MAKE THIS SAME MISTAKE PROUD SPONSOR OF GRANT COUNTY ATHLETES The Monument/Dayville Tigers had a season of growth, but it came to a close at the Feb. 16-18 1A-8 High Desert Dis- trict Tournament. Monument/Dayville lost a 54-46 match Friday to the Prai- rie City Panthers. The Tigers, led by head coach Jeff Schafer, met up with their Panther rivals twice this season, losing close matches each time. Last Friday was yet another close clash between the teams. At the half, the Tigers had a 23-22 lead, coming back from a 12-point deficit in the first quarter. In the third, the teams tied the score 33-33 with two min- utes left in the quarter. Then Prairie City pulled ahead 39-34, going into the fourth. The game was marked by a battle beyond the arc in the fourth. Tiger Tanner Walczyk scored two three-pointers, and his teammate Hayden Schafer hit one — back and forth with Panther player Levi Burke, who landed four three-point shots. In the end, Prairie City was able to keep the lead for the win. “They fought hard,” said Monument/Dayville head coach Jeff Schafer. “Prairie City is a deep team and well coached. We’re just still young, but they did a great job. All the kids did a great job and played hard. We always have faith in this team. When they work as a team they always do a great job — we can beat anybody, but Prairie City just kept fighting.” The Tigers lost their final chance to reach the state play- offs as they were defeated 43- 34 by the Adrian Antelopes. The game decided third place and the opportunity to advance. “They played hard,” Scha- fer said. “They’re a young team, and I’ll look forward to coaching them next year. They did a great job.” Don’t get left behind, call today! Kim Kell 541-575-0710 The Eagle/Angel Carpenter Monument/Dayville Tiger Drew Wilburn grabs a loose ball in the battle with the Prairie City Panthers in the 1A-8 High Desert District Tournament. From left, Tigers Hayden Schafer and Gabe Walker (10), Panther Syd Holman (23, back), Tiger GW Clark (23) and Panther Brogan McKrola. Monument/Dayville Lady Tiger season ends at districts Tiger coach praises team for never stopping By Angel Carpenter Blue Mountain Eagle The Monument/Dayville Tiger girls never gave up in the season or in the three-day 1A-8 High Desert District Tourna- ment. The Tigers, led by head coach Taylor Schmadeka, played aggressively in Game One against the Prairie City, but the Panthers won 44-30. The Tigers had a strong showing in the first quarter with Kendall Hettinga and Ra- vyn Walker each hitting a three- point shot and Faythe Schafer sinking two two-pointers. The teams were tied 10-10 going into the second. Then the Panthers outshot the Tigers 16- 11 in the second. Scoring was fairly even in the third, but Prairie City pushed ahead in the final eight minutes, outshooting the Tigers 12-5. “We had a good first half,” Schmadeka said. “In the second half, we didn’t have a lot of our shots go down and started to get a little discouraged. Prairie City wanted it a little more towards the end.” Midway through the season, Monument/Dayville lost a key player, Kyla Emerson, to an in- jury, but the starter was able to return for the tournament. Schamadeka praised Emer- son for her aggressive perfor- mance in the game. “Overall, I’m happy with our season,” he added. “The girls never stopped playing.” The Tigers followed up on Friday with a 42-32 win over Harper in the consolation game. Tiger Kendall Hettinga was recognized as a High Desert League Scholar Athlete, earn- ing a 3.5 or higher cumulative GPA. High Desert League All-Tournament selections Second team: Ravyn Walker Monument/Dayville vs. Prairie City Ravyn Walker: 8 points (two three-point- ers) Kendall Hettinga: 6 (two three-pointers) Faythe Schafer: 6 Danielle Rhoda: 6 Kyla Emerson: 4
