Sports
Blue Mountain Eagle
A9
Wednesday, January 31, 2018
Panthers end 11-year drought
Prairie City
exacts revenge
on Jordan Valley
By Angel Carpenter
Blue Mountain Eagle
It was the game of the de-
cade for the Prairie City Pan-
ther boys on Friday when they
beat Jordan Valley Mustangs
57-46 in their first win over
their High Desert League foes
since 2007.
Before the home game,
Panther player Lucas McKin-
ley said the team planned
to play to win for some “re-
venge” against Jordan Valley.
The stands were packed with
fans roaring for both teams.
“It was the game every-
body’s been waiting on all
year,” said Prairie City head
coach Sam Workman. “It was
a good one, and highly ag-
gressive.”
Prairie City had a small
jump on Jordan Valley in
the first quarter with a 19-16
lead, Panther Dorran Wilson
sinking four shots including
a 3-pointer. McKinley also
scored beyond the arc, Levi
Burke added two baskets and
was 1-2 at the free-throw line
Contributed photo/Cheryl Hoefler
Prairie City Panther Levi Burke (21) moves past a Jordan
Valley opponent with teammate Dorran Wilson at left.
and Syd Holman scored 2.
Prairie City had a slim 28-
26 lead going into the half,
and the Panthers were again 2
ahead in the third, 40-38.
“Offensively, we were in a
zone defense to keep my big
guys down by the basket and
out of foul trouble,” Workman
said.
Fouling toward the end of
the game had the Mustangs in
hot water. With 1 minute left,
an intentional foul was called
on Jordan Valley, and Wilson
landed both shots. Wilson was
10-12 at the free-throw line
for the night with 6 of those
points in the fourth quarter.
“Dorran pretty well con-
trolled the game, and Syd
and Levi controlled the re-
bounds,” Workman said.
Wilson led the Panthers
with 28 points, followed by
Burke with 14, Holman with
8 and McKinley with 7.
Workman said the Mus-
tangs have always been a top
contender.
“Jordan Valley didn’t do
anything that we didn’t work
on during the week before,
and we just came to play,” he
said.
The win moves Prai-
rie City into the top spot in
league over Jordan Valley.
Prairie City, ranked No. 9
among 1A OSAA teams, is
7-0 (15-3 overall). Jordan Val-
ley, ranked No. 6, is 7-1 (16-3
overall).
The Panthers extended
their win streak to 10 with
their 75-45 win over the Hun-
tington Locomotives away on
Saturday.
“They were pretty tough
— they surprised me,” Work-
man said. “They had three
kids that were pretty good ball
players.”
Prairie City will face Burnt
River at 3:30 p.m. Saturday in
Unity.
The Panthers face Mon-
ument/Dayville at 7:30 p.m.
Feb. 9 in Dayville, and they
host Crane at 3:30 p.m. Feb.
10.
“Everything really mat-
ters when you get to district,
and hopefully they’re ready
to play when we get there,”
Workman said. “You roll with
the punches and cross each
bridge when you get to it.”
The 1A-8 High Desert
League Basketball Tourna-
ment is scheduled for Feb.
Contributed photo/Cheryl Hoefler
15-17 at Grant Union Ju-
nior-Senior High School in Prairie City Panther Lucas McKinley (22) looks to pass
with Jordan Valley’s Kort Skinner on defense.
John Day.
The Eagle/Angel Carpenter
Grant Union Prospector Kellen Shelley (14) shoots
under pressure.
BOYS
Continued from Page A8
The Eagle/Angel Carpenter
Grant Union Prospector Madi McKrola (12) scores over the reach of Enterprise Outlaw Riley Gray.
GIRLS
Continued from Page A8
faced the Elgin Huskies on the road, tak-
ing a 59-34 win. Hallgarth said it was an-
other learning experience.
“I thought we came out very compla-
cent with not a lot of energy,” he said. “I
think we thought it was going to be easy
because of our first game with them (an
82-44 win Jan. 12).”
The Lady Pros turned the game
around in the second half.
“We dominated on defense and made
our easy shots,” Hallgarth said. “We
need to do a better job at the free-throw
line and rebounding, but everything else
looked spot on.”
Kaylee Wright led Grant Union with
27 points, followed by Whitney McClel-
lan with 11.
Grant Union hosts the Union Bobcats
(7-10 overall, 2-3 league) at 6 p.m. Fri-
day and the Imbler Panthers (3-15 over-
all, 0-5 league) at 4 p.m. Saturday.
Grant Union vs. Elgin
Kaylee Wright: 27 points
Whitney McClellan: 11
Hailie Wright: 8
Madi McKrola: 6
Mariah Moulton: 5
Trinity Hutchision: 2
SPLIT
Continued from Page A8
“Jordan Valley is undefeat-
ed in league,” said Panther
head coach Bo Workman.
“We played them tough oth-
er than that second quarter.
We slipped a little bit on de-
fense.”
The Panthers had fairly
even shooting with the Mus-
tangs in the third and fourth
quarters, but couldn’t close
the gap.
Workman said he was
happy with how his team
played overall.
“We played good. We just
played a good team,” Work-
man said.
He said, with a strong
team like Jordan Valley, they
need to kick up their inten-
sity on defense and create
more scoring opportunities.
Looking ahead, the Prai-
rie City junior varsity team
will host the Ukiah/Long
Creek junior varsity in Prai-
rie City at 6 p.m. Thursday.
Prairie City then travels
to Unity to face Burnt River
varsity at 2 p.m. Saturday.
Next week, Prairie City
will face Monument/Day-
ville in Dayville at 6 p.m.
Feb. 9, and will host Crane
at 2 p.m. Feb. 10.
The 1A-8 District Bas-
ketball tournament is Thurs-
day-Saturday, Feb. 15-17, at
Grant Union Junior-Senior
to make it a little bit more
aggressive.”
The Prospectors outshot
the Outlaws 25-16 in the
third.
Younger Grant Union
players saw some action in
the fourth, and though En-
terprise led scoring for the
quarter, the Prospectors’
lead was too much to over-
come.
Reimers said it was a
good win.
“I think that’s the best
team ball we’ve played so far
this season,” he said. “We’re
in a comfortable spot, but
we can’t take anything for
granted, so we’re going to
keep working hard.”
Enterprise head coach
Larry Wells said early turn-
overs were a contributing
factor in the loss.
“We knew Grant Union
had a great press, and we’d
been working hard all
the
week,” he said. “In the sec-
ond half, I felt that we were
able to handle their full court
press, and on offense we
were more patient.”
Wright highlighted Cauy
Weaver for his rebounding
and said their success at the
free-throw line was on point.
“The boys were ready,”
he said, adding, “Larry is
a great coach, and I’m sure
they’ll be ready for us next
time.”
Grant Union fell to the
Elgin Huskies 53-52 Sat-
urday, but the Prospectors,
ranked No. 9, are still at the
top of the 2A Wapiti League
with a 4-1 record, 12-5 over-
all.
Grant Union hosts the
Union Bobcats at 7 p.m. Fri-
day and the Imbler Panthers
at 5:30 p.m. Saturday.
Grant Union vs Enterprise
Duane Stokes: 16
Wade Reimers: 15
Kellen Shelley: 13
Cole Deiter: 11
Cauy Weaver: 9
Jacob Vaughan: 2
corner’s
HOT
SH T
EEK
OF THE W
GLADYS JOHNSON
Contributed photo/Cheryl Hoefler
Prairie City Panther Rilee Emmel (11) shoots with Jordan Valley Mustang Cheyenne
Davis (2) on defense.
High School in John Day.
The Lady Panthers are
fourth in league with a 4-3
record (9-8 overall). Jordan
Valley is 8-0 in first, Crane
is 7-1 in second and Adrian
is 4-3 in third.
Workman said they’ll be
thinking about the next four
games, and said things could
change on the league scene.
“We’re going to work on
more defense — to me that’s
where it’s at — also creat-
ing our own shots and being
more aggressive to the bas-
ket,” he said.
School: Long Creek
Grade: 11
Parents: Olinka and
Walter Johnson, Jr.
Sport: Basketball Position: Post
What I like best about my sport: “I like
that it keeps my adrenaline up. I enjoy
that the girls connect with each other.”
Coach’s Comment:
“She’s filling a leadership role on the
team. She’s like a coach on the court
and is pushing herself to maintain her
ability to stay on the court.”
- Coaches Amos Studtmann & TC Conner
PROUD SPONSOR OF GRANT COUNTY ATHLETES
Contributed photo/Cheryl Hoefler
Prairie City Panther Brianna Zweygardt (20) looks for an
opening to pass in Friday’s game against Jordan Valley.
100 E. Main • Stoplight in John Day
541-792-0425
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