Coos Bay Day One: Local teams upset in quarterfinals
COOS BAY – In surprising fashion, all three Yamhill Valley basketball teams competing at the state tournament in Coos Bay – Amity boys, Dayton boys and Willamina girls – all lost their matchups today in the quarterfinals.
The fourth-ranked Warriors suffered a 74-59 defeat to number-five Creswell.
Dayton, the second-rated team in 3A, fell to 10th-seeded Cascade Christian 53-45.
The Bulldogs, the girls’ fourth-ranked squad in the tournament, lost 53-37 to fifth-seed Brookings-Harbor.
Amity experienced a cold three-point performance against Creswell, hitting only two outside shots on 16 attempts. The Warriors also committed 20 turnovers against an exemplary Bulldog defense.
Creswell took a 38-23 at halftime, then extended its advantage to 62-35 through three quarters of play. Amity mounted a late charge, outscoring the Bulldogs 24-12 in the final period, but Creswell cruised to the 15-point win.
Landon Distler led the Warriors with 13 points on 4-8 shooting. Keenan Graham was the only other Amity player in double figures – he scored 12 points on 4-9 shooting, but committed seven turnovers in the loss.
Warrior big man Josh Wart, who averages 18 points per game, was limited to only nine against the Bulldogs. He hit two of eight shots and missed six of his 11 free throws.
Amity plays top-ranked De La Salle North Catholic tomorrow at North Bend High School; tip-off in the consolation contest is 9 a.m.
Dayton grabbed an early 13-5 lead over the Challengers in the final game of Thursday’s quarterfinals, but was outscored 48-32 over the final three periods to ultimately fall 53-45.
Early in the matchup, the Pirates played aggressive defense and executed patient offense to grab the eight-point lead.
Tyler Spink was especially dangerous in the initial eight minutes. The sophomore guard scored seven points in the period, including back-to-back buckets with two minutes left.
Cascade Christian rallied in the second quarter. The Medford-based team started hitting open looks and denying Dayton’s midrange offensive attack.
Kaden Fergus gave the Pirates solid energy in the third period to keep the Challengers’ lead within reach. The reserve center scored six points in the quarter, including a lefty lay-up which cut Cascade Christian’s edge to 32-30.
The Pirates eventually tied the contest at 40 in the fourth quarter. Dawson Ashley located his shooting stroke and tallied nine of his 14 points in the final six minutes.
Cascade Christian slowly increased its edge with 2:24 remaining, hit clutch free throws down the stretch and secured the 53-45 upset.
Dayton plays league foe Salem Academy tomorrow at 10:45 a.m. at North Bend High School.
Kira Rankin’s game-high 18 points weren’t enough as the Willamina girls dropped a 53-37 result to Brookins-Harbor. Rankin notched 12 of her 18 in the first half, but the Bruins’ electric outside shooting and unrelenting full-court defense proved the difference.
The Bulldogs led for most of the opening period, courtesy of Rankin’s wide variety of shots. Her floater in the lane handed Willamina an 8-4 lead with four minutes left in the quarter.
Brookings-Harbor closed the period on a 6-2 run to take a 10-8 advantage into the second.
Rankin’s slash to the hoop knotted the score at 14 in the next eight minutes. The Bulldogs nabbed a brief 22-20 lead as Bahley Scranton’s pocket pass led to Hallee Hughes’ lay-up.
The Bruins seized command in the third, outscoring Willamina 9-5 to go into the fourth quarter up 37-27.
In the final period, the Bulldogs failed to knock down open jump shots and Brookings-Harbor sailed to the 16-point victory.
Willamina faces Harrisburg tomorrow at 9 a.m. at Marshfield High School.
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