BOYS BASKETBALL
Bulldogs 80, Grizzlies 73
VANCOUVER — Burning Hoquiam with a 30-point second quarter, Stevenson withstood a Grizzly comeback to eliminate HHS from the District IV Class 1A Tournament on Tuesday night at King’s Way Christian in Vancouver.
Falling short in their bid for a third successive state appearance, the Grizzlies concluded their season at 7-15.
As has been the case in the majority of their losses, the Grizzlies were unable to dig out of a deep first-half hole. Unheralded Jono Blackledge hit five 3-point shots in the first half in helping Stevenson to a 40-25 halftime lead.
“We lost him,” HHS coach Curtis Eccles conceded. “He was open for 3-point shots because we were focusing on other kids.”
Also typically, the Grizzlies made a strong second-half run. With Rayyon Dayton and Matt Brown doing most of the damage inside, Hoquiam cut the deficit to four late in the third quarter and on a couple of occasions in the fourth.
The Grizzlies, however, were only 1 of 12 in 3-point shooting and were unable to sustain the rally.
Dayton finished with 22 points to match Stevenson’s Isaac Hoidal for game scoring honors. Brown added 21 points. Hoquiam’s Payton Quintanilla pulled down 19 rebounds to go with his 14 points.
Eccles said injuries, illnesses and suspensions help prevent his young squad from gaining cohesion this season.
“We had only two kids (Dayton and Victor James) play in every game,” Eccles noted.
He praised seniors James and Bryan Morales and thanked assistant coaches Keith Reynvaan, Tracy Pelan and Neil Fisher.
Hoquiam 9 15 27 22 — 73
Stevenson 10 30 19 21 — 80
Hoquiam (73) — Dayton 22, Brown 21, Quintanilla 14, James 11, Folkers 2, Larsen 2, Bumstead 1, Morales. FG — 27-72 (.375). FT — 18-26.
Stevenson (80) — Hoidal 22, Krog 20, Blackledge 19, Hobbs 12, M. Hall, Van Pelt, Lowery, B. Hall. FG — 27-73 (.370). FT — 17-29.
Indians 50, Vikings 45 (OT)
CASTLE ROCK — Reece Wallace’s 3-point basket in overtime turned the tide as Toledo eliminated Willapa Valley from the District IV Class 2B Tournament Tuesday at Castle Rock.
The Vikings drew first blood in overtime on a pair of Ryon Ashley free throws. That was the only scoring for the first 3:10 of the extra period.
Wallace, however, ripped an offensive rebound away from a Viking and drained a three seconds later. Holding the Vikings scoreless for the remainder of overtime, the Indians pulled away.
“Size and rebounding killed us,” Valley coach Jay Pearson reflected.
Down 32-25 at the half, the Vikings stymied the Indians by switching to a triangle-and-two defense in the second half. They tied it in the final 90 seconds, but missed two free throws in the last minute.
Willapa Valley’s lone senior on the postseason roster, Ashley topped the Vikings with 16 points and seven rebounds. Chad Flemetis had 12 points for the Vikes.
Andreas Malunat hit four threes in the first half in leading Toledo with 14 points.
The Vikings (17-6) were frustrated by a pair of close losses in district. In addition, they had the misfortune of facing Central League champion Toledo following the Indians’ upset loss to Toutle Lake last Saturday.
“All of our losses, none have been more than seven (points), most were one or two,” Pearson summed up. “Our next step is going to win these games.”
Toledo 18 14 1 10 7 — 50
W. Valley 14 11 5 13 2 — 45
Toledo (50) — Wood, B. Marcil 3, Arceo-Hansen 3, Arroyo 10, D. Marcil, Farbo, R. Wallace 13, Malunat 16, W. Wallace 5. FG — 17-58 (.293). FT — 4-9.
Willapa Valley (45) — Flemetis 12, M. Pearson 7, Hamilton 5, Roonsburg, Ashley 16, Walker 5, Deniston. FG — 15-42 (.357). FT — 11-17.
