A definition of relevancy in high school boys basketball: Good teams schedule non-league games against you because they want to play better competition, not because they want an easy win; or, they schedule you because a win or a loss won’t adversely affect their power ranking.
Either way, the Hood River Valley boys hoops program, under seventh-year Coach Christopher Dirks, is relevant once again.
“We have had three winning seasons in a row,” Dirks said. “I don’t know the last time that happened with this program; maybe the ‘90s. It feels good to be part of this new streak because I played for this program and have been around it as a player and coach for over 10 years. I think a lot of people thought HRV basketball would just never be relevant again.
“I think we are still in the process of changing that, but we are headed in the right direction.”
The Eagles are coming off the abbreviated COVID-19 2021 late spring season when they were 9-5 overall and 6-4 in the Intermountain Conference. Dirks coached the Eagles to a 12-10 record in 2019-20 after a 14-7 record the year before when they made the 5A state playoffs. (There were no state playoffs held after the ’21 spring season.)
“We really felt like we are continuing to make progress to be a serious competitor at the state level, then, like all programs across the state, we had to take a step back with the pandemic and online learning,” Dirks said. “Weekly online meetings, and eventually outdoor workouts, kept us together and we were able to find some success in a condensed season last summer.
“With a new coaching staff and players with new skill sets, things are going to look and feel a little different. But I am confident in the people we have in this program.”
HRV fans will have to travel to Gladstone on Dec. 1 to see what Dirks mean about different; the Eagles open their 2021-22 season on the road against the Gladiators. Gladstone will have to prepare for an HRV team returning five seniors — three of them starters, including first-team, all-league guard Emanuel Romero. The 5-foot-9 Romero is one of five players with varsity experience and will be in his third year as a starter.
Rugged Ryles Buckley (6-foot-2), fresh off a record-setting year in football, is a returning starter at the forward position; Geofrey Shoaf (5-10) is a returning starter who can play both the wing and guard spots; and Clayton Cook (6-2) and Tommy Ziegler (5-9) both played some varsity minutes last year and will continue to contribute this year in a variety of ways, Dirks said.
“I think the preseason will tell us a lot about our depth and who will contribute as a role player,” he added. “We are very excited about the potential and work ethic of our roster, but we obviously haven’t played as a group, so we need time to develop our bench and become a cohesive unit.”
Dirks said it may take some time, but he expects the Eagles to gel later this season. The 10-game league season doesn’t start until a month and half from now.
“We can compete with any team in the IMC,” Dirks said. “Over the years the conference has leveled out a bit and any team can compete with any other. We need some time to put all the pieces together, but when we hit our stride, we are going to be in the running to win the conference.”
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