BlueMountainEagle.com Wednesday, January 16, 2019 A13 WEDNESDAY January 16, 2019 Tiger girls claim home victory over Panthers in Monument By Angel Carpenter Blue Mountain Eagle The Dayville/Monument Tiger girls team claimed a 38-27 victory over the Prai- rie City Panthers Saturday at the Monument basketball court. The cross-county High Desert League opponents kept the game close in the fi rst half, Dayville/Monu- ment leading by two points in the fi rst and second quarters. Both teams played strong to the end, but the Tigers out- scored the Panthers 23-14 in the second half. Dayville/Monument led 15-13 going into the third, and Tiger Aubreianna Osborne grabbed a rebound and her teammate Denali Twehues added 2 to the scoreboard. Panther Hailee Wall landed two 2-pointers and was 2-2 at the free-throw line, but Twehues and teammate SPORTS SCHEDULE Faythe Schafer each scored a 3-point shot, with Twehues adding another 2 and Tiger Kyla Emerson going 1-2 at the free-throw line. Panther Samantha Work- man came out on fi re in the fourth, landing two 2-point shots in a row. Emerson answered back with a 3-pointer. Then Pan- ther Rilee Emmel shot two 2-pointers in a row, Prairie City trailing by 4 points. Twehues and Emmel each scored in the paint again. Then the Tigers extended their lead from there, includ- ing another 3-pointer from Emerson, for the 11-point win. Emerson scored a game- high 14 for the Tigers, fol- lowed by Twehues with 13 and Faythe Schafer with 9. Emmel led the Panthers with 11 points, followed by Wall with 8. “We were on their fl oor, and it’s always a battle with Dayville/Monument Kyla Emerson: 14 (three 3-pointers) Denali Twehues: 13 (one 3-pointer) Faythe Schafer: 9 (3-5 free throws) Aubreianna Osborne: 2 Prairie City Rilee Emmel: 11 (one 3-pointer) Hailee Wall: 8 (2-2 free throws) Samantha Workman: 4 Katie Hire: 2 Abbey Pfeff erkorn: 2 The Eagle/Angel Carpenter Dayville/Monument Tiger Denali Twehues (22) works the ball out of the corner, past Prairie City Panther defenders Abbey Pfeff erkorn (32) and Samantha Workman (12). these guys — the ball wasn’t falling,” said Panther head coach Bo Workman. Commenting on some of his players, he said Abbey Pfefferkorn has had more playing time recently and is gaining more confi dence. Katie Hire is just getting back into the game, recover- ing from an injury. “Emily Ennis plays good defense and plays aggressive,” he said. “Rilee Emmel, she’s just nailing it, and Hailee Wall is big inside.” The Panthers, 2-1 in the High Desert League and 2-9 overall, host the Crane Mus- tangs at 6 p.m. Friday and the Harper Hornets at 2 p.m. Saturday. “We started off a little slow on the offense in the fi rst half, but fi nally got it together when it mattered in the fourth quarter,” said Tiger head coach Taylor Schmadeka. “I thought we played really good defense, but we gave up a lot of offen- sive rebounds to them.” “Denali played tough and got a lot of rebounds for us,” Panther boys dominate Tigers in Monument By Angel Carpenter Blue Mountain Eagle Prairie City Jojari Field: 9 (one 3-pointer) Jonathan Lawrence: 3 (one 3-pointer) Jayden Winegar: 7 (one 3-pointer) Brandon Horrell: 1-1 free throw Marcus Judd: 1-1 free throw Declan Zweygardt: 2 Levi Burke: 11 (1-1 free throw) Lucas McKinley: 9 (1 3-pointer, 2-3 free throws) Syd Holman: 13 (1-2 free throws) Cole Deiter: 14 Lane Williams: 2 Brett Copenhaver: 2 Friday, Jan. 18 Grant Union wrestling @ Oregon Classic in Redmond, 1:30 p.m. Long Creek/Ukiah vs. Jor- dan Valley in Ukiah, girls at 5 p.m., boys at 6:30 p.m. Grant Union basketball vs. Stanfi eld, boys at 6 p.m., girls at 7:30 p.m. Prairie City basketball vs. Crane, girls at 6 p.m., boys at 7:30 p.m. Dayville/Monument @ Burnt River, girls at 6 p.m., boys at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 19 Grant Union wrestling @ Oregon Classic in Redmond, TBA Dayville/Monument vs. Four Rivers in Monu- ment, girls at 2 p.m., boys at 3:30 p.m. Long Creek/Ukiah vs. Huntington in Ukiah, girls at 2 p.m., boys at 3:30 p.m. Prairie City basketball vs. Harper, girls at 2 p.m., boys at 3:30 p.m. Grant Union basketball @ Union, boys at 4 p.m., girls at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 22 Dayville/Monument @ Grant Union junior var- sity, girls at 5 p.m., boys at 6:30 p.m. he said. “Courtney played really good defense on the post — couldn’t ask her to do any better.” “Aubreianna, she does good down low,” he said. “She played good defense and did a good job getting a hand in the passing lane.” He added, “Kyla hit some 3’s for us late that we needed, and Faythe Schafer is always consistent for me.” Emerson said her team performed well overall. “We stuck to our offense, and I’m really proud of the girls for all their effort put into the game,” she said. Dayville/Monument is 11-3 on the season and 3-1 in league. The Tigers fell 62-16 when they hosted the Crane Mustangs on Friday in Dayville. The Tigers will face the Burnt River Bulls at 6 p.m. Friday in Unity, and they host Four Rivers at 2 p.m. Saturday in Monument. The fast-starting Prairie City Panther boys roared past the Dayville/Monu- ment Tigers 74-27 at the Monument basketball court on Saturday. The bleachers were full with spectators cheering loudly for the Grant County teams in what was a fast- paced, physical match. Prairie City is No. 4 among OSAA’s 1A teams and is 13-0 on the sea- son, 3-0 in the High Des- ert League, making them a formidable foe for Day- ville/Monument, which is 5-9 on the season and 1-3 in league. Cole Deiter led the Pan- thers with 14 points fol- lowed by Syd Holman with 13. Donovan Schafer and Drew Wilburn led the Tigers with 6 points each. Panther Jayden Winegar was fi rst on the scoreboard, landing a 3-pointer. Dayville/Monument’s strong defense was no match for Prairie City’s height. Deiter, 6-foot-5, scored two in a row, fol- lowed by Panther Levi Burke, 6-foot-4, with 2. Tiger Drew Wilburn scored 2 points off an assist from Cade Milton, and Donovan Schafer added another 2 halfway into the fi rst quarter. Dayville/Monument The Eagle/Angel Carpenter Gabe Walker-Hopkins: 3 (one 3-pointer) Mark Thomas: 3 (one 3-pointer) JT Hand: 4 (2-4 free throws) Drew Wilburn: 6 (2-5 free throws) Donovan Schafer: 6 DJ Howell: 3 (1-2 free throws) Wesley Adams: 2 Prairie City Panther Lucas McKinley pushes through with a steal from Dayville/ Monument Tiger Mark Thomas, left, as Tiger Drew Wilburn moves in. With less than three minutes to go, Panther Syd Holman nabbed the ball from the Tigers and dunked on a fast break, and team- mate Jojari Field — the shortest, but possibly the fastest, Panther — added three 2-pointers late in the quarter. Prairie City led 23-6 going into the second and outscored the home team 14-7 in the second. Prairie City denied Day- ville/Monument all but one 3-point shot in the third quarter made by Tiger Gabe Walker-Hopkins, the Pan- thers taking a 59-16 lead going into the fourth. More of the Panther bench made an appearance in the fi nal eight minutes. The intensity didn’t die down. One Panther appeared to have his hair pulled, and another had an elbow to the face. Lucas McKinley and Jonathan Lawrence sank 3-pointers for the Panthers, and Declan Zweygardt, Brett Copenhaver and Mar- cus Judd also scored 2 each. Tigers Wesley Adams and DJ Howell got in on the scoring in the fi nal minute of play. Howell also added 1-2 at the free-throw line earlier in the quarter, and Hand was 2-2 and Wilburn was 2-3 at the free-throw line. Prairie City head coach Sam Workman said Day- ville/Monument made it a high-pressure game. “They played tough defense that was good for my boys,” he said. Burke said, “They play a different style than we are — super physical, fast and all over the place,” which he said teaches his team to stay composed. Prairie City hosts the Crane Mustangs at 7:30 p.m. Friday and the Harper Hornets at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday. Tiger head coach Jeff Schafer said his team never gave up. “Donovan and JT did well rebounding,” he said. “They work hard on the glass.” He said he was proud of his team for their hus- tle and working well together. He noted Howell added a spark in the second half. “Being outsized, they worked hard,” the coach said of his team. “I thought we played more as a team,” said player Donovan Schafer. “It’s hard to get around a team like that. We’re going to keep working and hopefully get them next time.” Dayville/Monument fell to Crane 55-30 Friday on the road. The Tigers will face the Burnt River Bulls at 7:30 p.m. Friday in Unity, and they host Four Rivers at 3:30 p.m. Satur- day in Monument. SPORTS ROUNDUP Defense key in Grant Union boys’ 6-point win over Weston-McEwen The Grant Union Pros- pector boys, missing a starter due to injury, stepped up Saturday for a 62-57 win over conference opponents the Weston-McEwen Tiger- Scots in Athena. Jacob Vaughan led the Prospectors with 27 points, followed by Tanner Elliott with 15 and Devon Stokes with 9. Tristan Morris, who often leads in scoring, injured his foot in practice last week and could be out for four weeks, said head coach Kelsy Wright. Wright said his team understands what they’re up against in the Blue Moun- tain Conference, and they’re ready to fi ll in that gap to keep the team competitive. Currently, Grant Union is second in the league (6-8 overall, 4-1 league) to the Heppner Mustangs (11-6, 5-0). The Union Bobcats (10-5, 3-2) are third in the standings. In Athena, the Prospec- tors held the lead throughout the contest. “They (the TigerScots) were in a 1-2-2 zone, so we came up with some good plays,” Wright said. “Jacob Vaughan and Devon Stokes were just great on the 3-point shot,” he said. “He (Devon) got them out of the 1-2-2 zone then man to man. Our defense really played key in winning that game.” He added, “Tanner Elliott was a monster in getting sec- ond-chance points for us and making it to the free-throw line quite a bit.” Wright said they’re pre- pared to face the Stanfi eld Tigers (5-11, 2-3, No. 4 in league) and Union this week. They’ve watched Stan- fi eld in two games, and they beat Union 59-47 on Jan. 5 in John Day. “The boys understand what the deal is,” he said. “These are going to be our biggest games to stay in league competition.” Grant Union hosts Stan- fi eld on Friday at 6 p.m. The Prospectors are on the road to Union Saturday, facing the Bobcats at 4 p.m. Prospector girls surge ahead in second half run over TigerScots The Grant Union Pros- pector girls, ranked No. 4 among OSAA’s 2A teams, are on a six-game win streak. Grant Union’s defensive intensity propelled them to a 57-33 victory over the Weston-McEwen Tiger- Scots in Athena in confer- ence action. The Prospectors were ahead 26-19 at the half, then outscored the TigerScots 18-10 in the third for a 44-29 lead. Grant Union widened the gap for the 24-point win, holding Weston-McE- wen to 4 points in the fourth. Madi McKrola led the Prospectors for the night with 28 points. “Our goal was to focus on rebounding and creating the offensive fast break,” said head coach Kristi Moore. “After half time, we were able to make a few adjust- ments, which led to scoring opportunities.” The win gives Grant Union an 11-3 record. They are leading at 5-0 in the Blue Mountain Conference, fol- lowed by the Enterprise Outlaws (4-2), and Heppner and Union (both 3-2). Stan- fi eld is 2-3. The Grant Union girls host Stanfi eld at 7:30 p.m. Friday, then travel to Union Saturday where they face the Bobcats at 5:30 p.m. The Prospector girls beat Union 60-52 on Jan. 5 in John Day. Mountain Lion girls corral the Bulls in Unity The Long Creek/Ukiah Mountain Lions experi- enced the thrill of victory and agony of defeat as they defeated the Burnt River Bulls 26-23 on Friday in Unity and fell 69-17 Satur- day to the Crane Mustangs. Coach Amos Studt- mann said their contest with the Bulls was intense and physical. “Burnt River has come a long way since we fi rst saw them,” he said. Long Creek/Ukiah led 19-11 at the half. Then the Bulls left the Mountain Lions scoreless in the third. Studtmann said they struggled offensively and defensively in the third. Burnt River outshot Long Creek/Ukiah 19-0. “We allowed Burnt River to close the gap and gain the lead before coming back in the fourth quarter and mak- ing some smarter passes and getting a few rebounds,” he said. He said all but one player on his bench had playing time — the one team mem- ber was in on their game against the Mustangs. The coach said their goal in Crane was to pressure the Mustangs to play their start- ers as much as possible. He said the girls felt it was a success because Crane kept their starters in the contest. “We got back on defense, and for the most part, we were able to force them to run an offense in order to score and not just take all the fast breaks,” he said. “Luc- chese Douglas and Brooke Harrison were a huge part of slowing down the fast break.” The Mountain Lion girls will host Jordan Valley at 5 p.m., with the boys play- ing at 6:30 p.m., on Friday in Ukiah, and they host the Pilot Rock junior varsity team at 4:30 p.m., boys at 6 p.m., Saturday in Ukiah. Long Creek/Ukiah boys put new strategies into play The Long Creek/Ukiah Mountain Lion boys split wins on the road, taking a 41-21 victory in Unity over the Burnt River Bulls and falling 65-38 to the Crane Mustangs. Coach Amos Studtmann said they put new strategies they’ve practiced to the test in Unity. “It worked,” he said, add- ing they tried some different offensive plays. “I put in all our subs, working them into our offense and getting them to make good decisions with the team,” he said. “They all did well.” He said Jesus Olmos ran hard and kept in correct position on defense. “Henry Grannis was good on rebounds, and Mar- sel Kozhogulov was aggres- sive trying to block shots and steal the ball,” he said. Studtmann said making poor passes and giving up easy rebounds in Crane led to their loss. “They didn’t play up to our usual abilities and had too many turnovers and few rebounds,” he said. He noted that James Kreamier was almost 90 per- cent from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter, landing 8-9 shots. “I see him going to the line and chalk him up for 2 points,” the coach said. He said, for their games in Ukiah, the teams will focus on making good passes and rebounding. He noted the Ukiah gym is a challenge for visitors. “You’re close to the audi- ence and the roof is low, so it’s hard to keep good spac- ing,” he said.