Boys Prep Basketball Roundup: Harbor teams falter in Friday district-playoff losses

Montesano and Elma lose in semis; Hoquiam’s season ends with consolation-round loss

All four Twin Harbors boys basketball teams lost their respective district-playoff games as we review Friday’s playoff action.

PHOTO BY FOREST WORGUM Montesano senior Tyce Peterson, right, drives to the hoop during the Bulldogs’ 58-46 loss to Seton Catholic in a 1A District 4 Tournament semifinal game on Friday in Vancouver.

PHOTO BY FOREST WORGUM Montesano senior Tyce Peterson, right, drives to the hoop during the Bulldogs’ 58-46 loss to Seton Catholic in a 1A District 4 Tournament semifinal game on Friday in Vancouver.

1A DISTRICT 4 TOURNAMENT

Seton Catholic 58, Montesano 46

Montesano was unable to climb out of an early hole in a 58-46 loss to Seton Catholic in the 1A District 3 Tournament semifinals on Friday in Vancouver.

The Bulldogs (17-6 overall) hit just 2-of-16 shots in the first quarter (12.5%) to fall behind 23-11 after eight minutes of play.

“We came out of the gate really slow. We just couldn’t make any shots and could not get going through the first 10-12 minutes of the game,” Monte head coach Leonard Barnes said. “We dug ourselves a hole.”

Trailing 38-23 at the half, the Bulldogs clawed back into the game with a 15-8 third quarter and trimmed the deficit to six points on two separate occasions in the second half.

But Monte never got over the hump, hitting just 2-of-13 shots (15%) and scoring eight points in the fourth quarter.

Monte went 15 of 54 from the floor (28%), including 2 for 16 from beyond the arc (13%), and had its seven-game winning streak snapped with the loss.

“We had a lot of shots, we just couldn’t get anything to drop,” Barnes said. “Credit to these kids. They worked hard and battled really hard.”

PHOTO BY FOREST WORGUM Montesano senior Jaxson Wilson, right, defends a Seton Catholic player during the Bulldogs’ 58-46 loss in a 1A District 4 Tournament semifinal game on Friday in Vancouver.

PHOTO BY FOREST WORGUM Montesano senior Jaxson Wilson, right, defends a Seton Catholic player during the Bulldogs’ 58-46 loss in a 1A District 4 Tournament semifinal game on Friday in Vancouver.

The Bulldogs were led by junior guard Delon Chan with 16 points followed by senior guard Peyton Damasiewicz with nine points.

Seton Catholic (16-5) was led by Lance Lee with 19 points and extended its winning streak to 12 games.

The loss relegates Monte to the elimination round, where it will face La Center on Wednesday (time, location to be determined).

Montesano 11 12 15 8 – 46

Seton Catholic 23 15 8 12 – 58

Scoring: Montesano – Chan 16, Damasiewicz 9, Wilson 6, Peterson 6, Bodwell 5, Cobb 4. Seton Catholic – Lee 19, Wilson 15, Angelo 12, George 7, Tran 3, Glassmire 3.

KODY CHRISTEN | THE CHRONICLE Elma’s Traden Carter (0), AJ Holmes (3) and Theo Flores (5) defend Tenino’s Noah Schow during the Eagles’ 63-52 loss in a 1A District 4 semifinal game on Friday in Tenino.

KODY CHRISTEN | THE CHRONICLE Elma’s Traden Carter (0), AJ Holmes (3) and Theo Flores (5) defend Tenino’s Noah Schow during the Eagles’ 63-52 loss in a 1A District 4 semifinal game on Friday in Tenino.

Tenino 63, Elma 52

In two previous meetings this season, Elma saw a potential victory against Tenino slip away in the fourth quarter.

History repeated itself on Friday as the Eagles rallied to tie the game but ended up on the wrong end of a 63-52 loss in a 1A District semifinal game in Tenino.

The Eagles (14-8) fell behind 34-23 at the half and trailed 47-38 entering the final period.

Elma responded with a 9-0 run to start the fourth quarter, tying the game at 47-all and to seize the momentum.

But two fouls and two turnovers halfway through the period killed the run, leading to the Beavers (16-5) outscoring Elma 16-5 down the stretch to send the Eagles to the consolation rounds.

“Our first half wasn’t what we needed from our group. Thought we played tentative and a little scared for a spot we had been in before,” said Elma head coach Matt Ferrier, who guided the Eagles to the district-title game last season. “We were the team that had played in that game before but it didn’t look like it. Tenino played a hell of a game and they took it to us.”

Elma senior guard Cason Seaberg led all scorers with 22 points to go along with five rebounds.

Junior guard Traden Carter had 16 points while senior forward AJ Holmes added nine points and a team-best 11 rebounds for Elma.

The Eagles shot 37% from the field on 21-of-57 shooting, including 5 for 22 from 3-point range (23%).

“Incredibly proud that my guys found a way to make a game of it,” Ferrier said. “I love my team and how hard they work. I wouldn’t change it for anything, but just wish we could have got them over the hump tonight.”

Elma will look to keep its season alive against Stevenson in an elimination game on Wednesday (time, location to be determined).

Elma 15 8 15 14 — 52

Tenino 21 13 13 16 — 63

Scoring: Elma — Seaberg 22, Carter 16, Holmes 9, Flores 3, Studer 2. Tenino — Feltus 15, Gonia 14, Schow 11, Burkhardt 10, Snider 9, Strawn 4.

Stevenson 68, Hoquiam 58

Early foul trouble and poor inside shooting led to Hoquiam’s season-ending 68-58 loss to Stevenson in the 1A District 4 Tournament on Friday at Stevenson High School.

Grizzlies Zander Jump, Chris Bryson and Aiden Butcher each got hit with two early fouls, leading to Hoquiam falling behind 18-11 after one quarter.

“We got into some big time foul trouble right out of the gate,” Hoquiam head coach Jeff Niemi said. “So we went deep into our rotation early and we held out OK, but it was just a tough early going with that being a factor.”

Further complicating matters was Hoquiam (10-12) shooting 11 for 32 from inside the 3-point line (34%) for the game.

“We didn’t shoot well inside at all, which has been a theme at the end of the season,” Niemi said. “For whatever reason, we’ve really struggled to finish inside the arc.”

Hoquiam was led by Jump (17 points, 7 rebounds), freshman guard Lincoln Niemi (15 pts., 5 assists) and sophomore guard Joey Bozich (10 pts., ast., steal).

The Grizzlies outrebounded the Bulldogs (12-7) 36-35, had one less turnover with 16 and shot 33% from the field on 19-of-57 shooting.

Coach Niemi took time to acknowledge his seniors Konlan Higgins, Jump, Chance LaBounty, Bryson, Jose Fabian and Butcher. He also thanked assistant coaches Zac Reynvaan and Ed Dawson and volunteer Steve Jump for all they’ve done to support the team.

“Going into the season, everything I heard was we might be the odd team out. … Credit to these seniors for getting to a spot that no one thought they would after losing 10 seniors, including the league MVP,” Coach Niemi said.

Hoquiam 11 12 16 19 – 58

Stevenson 18 12 22 16 – 68

Scoring: Hoquiam – Jump 17, Niemi 15, Bozich 10, Bryson 6, Dayton 4, LaBounty 3, Maxfield 3. Stevenson – Bach 25, Blackledge 15, Funk 12, Waymire 9, Kick 2.

2B DISTRICT 4 TOURNAMENT

Chief Leschi 71, Raymond 36

Raymond couldn’t slow down Chief Leschi in a 71-36 season-ending loss in the 2B District 4 Tournament on Friday at Rochester High School.

The Seagulls (11-11) took a 9-0 lead early in the first quarter then saw the Warriors (17-5) trim the Raymond lead to 11-10 at the end of the period.

Chief Leschi pulled away with a 26-6 second quarter and held a 51-23 lead entering the final period of play.

“We started out hot, taking a 9-0 lead in the first quarter. From there, Leschi cranked up the defensive pressure and we didn’t have an answer,” Raymond head coach Mike Tully said. “Our effort was there, but Leschi was just too quick for us. Our goal was to slow them down and make it a half-court game and we just couldn’t do it on a consistent basis. It’s not the way you want to end a season, but I’m proud of our guys, especially the seniors.”

Sophomore wing Chris Banker scored 12 points to go along with four rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block for Raymond.

Junior guard Chris Quintana added 10 points, three rebounds, two assists and two steals for the Seagulls.

Raymond shot 42.5% from the field on 17-of-40 shooting and had 25 turnovers in the game.

The loss brings an end to the prep basketball careers of Raymond seniors Ashton Kongbouakhay, Elijah Rumbles, Austin Snodgrass, Auston Caricchio, Talan Yearout and Taren Stephens.

Raymond 11 6 6 15 – 36

Chief Leschi 10 26 15 20 – 71

Scoring: Raymond – Banker 12, Quintana 10, Snodgrass 6, Yearout 6, Welch 4. Chief Leschi – Winzer 20, Spino 18, Lara 14, Dillon 9, Oyos 6, Elkins 2, Earl 2.

Forks 78, Ocosta 44

Facing elimination, Ocosta came out flat and never recovered in a 78-44 loss to Forks in the 2B District 4 Tournament on Friday in Rochester.

The Wildcats (7-14) trailed 21-14 after one quarter and faced a 23-point deficit by halftime.

“After some good practices all week leading up to the game, we came out flat for whatever reason and fell behind from the get go,” Ocosta head coach Jason Quinby said. “Forks was clearly the more aggressive team tonight and made us pay for every little mistake.”

Jesus Agramon led Ocosta with 12 points while Tarren Lewis (10 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals) also scored in double figures for Ocosta.

“I thought our hustle was there for the most part, but the execution of that hustle was usually not where it needed to be,” Quinby said. “Overall, we struggled offensively to find a groove as Forks packed in their zone and dared us to shoot, and we didn’t really shoot well enough to draw them out. It was a tough way to end the season, but like I told my guys, we’ve made a lot of growth throughout the season and have laid the foundation for what I believe to be a great season to come.”

Ocosta returns its entire team next season, including six juniors and five eighth-graders.

Ocosta 14 7 14 9 – 44

Forks 21 23 23 11 – 78

Scoring: Ocosta – Agramon 12, Lewis 10, Kay. Turner 6, Beard 4, Dungey 2, Priest 2, Wyland 2, Solis 1. Forks – Salazar 25, Lausche 10, Davis 6, Davila-Castro 5, Micheau 2, Foster 4, Rowley 8, Gonzales 4, Terrones 2.

Other games

1A District 4 Tournament

La Center 60, King’s Way Christian 55 (KWC eliminated)

2B District 4 Tournament

Wahkiakum 59, Kalama 49

Ilwaco 74, Rainier 56