By Mike Weber
For Columbia Gorge News
HOOD RIVER — The Hood River Valley High Eagles (3-5) concluded a very tough OSAA girls basketball non-league schedule in December, playing six of their eight games versus Class 6A squads, including five teams with winning records.
The Class 5A Eagles recorded their most impressive win of the season with a 32-22 road win over the Class 6A Sandy High Pioneers (4-4). The Eagles were unable to maintain their momentum, though, as they lost their next three contests against 6A teams in the Interstate Shootout Tournament Dec. 20-22 at Lake Oswego High School.
The Eagles lost, 43-23, to the No. 11-ranked Lake Oswego High Lakers (5-3) on Dec. 20. The Eagles then lost, 46-19, Dec. 21 to the Ida B. Wells High Guardians (5-4), followed by a 34-29 defeat to the North Medford Black Tornado (1-11) on Dec. 22. The loss to North Medford marked HRV’s second loss by five points or less this season.
The Eagles, guided by first-year Coach Zach Pauls, were hoping that by facing strong squads in preseason, it will help them prepare for their Northwest Oregon Conference (NWOC) schedule. The Eagles were hoping to snap a three-game losing streak when they opened their 16-game NWOC schedule with a road game on Monday versus the defending league champion Wilsonville High Wildcats (4-3).
“Our goal is to make the state playoffs and I think it’s attainable,” said Pauls, who was an assistant coach for the Eagles’ squad the past two years. “If we continue to play good defense like we have been doing at the beginning of the season, then we’re going to have a real good chance to get to the playoffs. In our eight games, we’ve only allowed opponents to score 40 or more points four times. We need to score a little more, but I think we’ll continue to improve offensively, as well.”
The Eagles average 39.62 points allowed per game. The Eagle defense is ranked No. 1 out of 32 Class 5A squads.
An experienced Eagle squad with six seniors is hoping to finish in the top-four of the nine-team league standings and earn a state playoff berth for the first time since 1999. Those seniors include Mia Garcia, Tess Balzer, Bella Howe, Emily Doss, Natalia Ventura and Brooke Johnson. The Eagles are focusing on continuing their gradual improvement in league play; 2024-25 was their best record in their three years in the NWOC.
Howe and junior Addi Van Metre are leading the team in scoring and they’re expected to help contributing to the Eagle offense throughout the season. Both are starters and didn’t play at the Lake Oswego tournament because they were both sick. The Eagles were actually missing a third starter there in Doss, who is recovering from a concussion. Howe and Van Metre are expected to play this week.
The Eagles finished in fifth place last year in the NWOC with a 7-7 won/lost record (13-11 overall). The Eagles finished behind the Canby High Cougars (8-6, 14-12), who edged out the Eagles for fourth place to earn a playoff berth. The top four NWOC squads qualified for state last year.
The Eagles will be seeking to get a win in their first league home game, Jan. 7 at 5:45 p.m. versus the Hillsboro High Spartans (0-7), a 2025 state playoff squad. The Eagles enjoyed some success versus the Spartans last year as they recorded two single-digit victories. The Eagles will play three games in five days, including a 7 p.m. road game on Jan. 9 at La Salle Prep (5-3).
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