Playing their first game in two weeks, The Dalles High Riverhawks (1-1) notched their first win with a 56-41 victory over the Columbia High Bruins (1-3) in a non league girls basketball game Dec. 16 at The Dalles High School’s Kurtz Gym.
The Dalles sophomore post Sydney Newby scored 19 points to help lead the Class 4A Riverhawks to the win over the Bruins, of the WIAA Class 1A. Newby demonstrated her athleticism at the outset of the contest as she grabbed a rebound after a missed Bruin shot and then dribbled the length of the court and sank a layup for a 2-0 lead with 6:49 on the clock.
“Laci (Hoylman) and I were really trying to use our height advantage to get lots of rebounds,” said Newby. “I think we can be one of the top teams in the Tri Valley Conference this year. If we play like we did today and then continue to get better, I think we can be one of the top contenders in the league. We have definitely improved a lot since our first game (a Dec. 2, 52-25 loss to Banks).”
The Riverhawks, guided by second-year Coach Darcey Hodges, were seeking to get a second straight win when they played the Class 3A Horizon Christian High Hawks (2-2) Tuesday in Tualatin (result was after the printed edition deadline).
“They played aggressive, and they did all the things that we’ve been working on, so it’s fun to see how much progress we’ve made since the beginning of the season,” said Hodges. “Sydney was attacking the basket and being strong with the ball and not playing timid, so it was nice to see her come out and play hard. We definitely have bigger girls than Columbia, so that definitely helped us a lot.
“A lot of the things we struggled with at Banks we picked up and improved. Everyone is starting to understand the game well and when to roll and where to cut to the basket and they’re seeing each other better. We made a lot of good passes, and we played good team basketball.”
Columbia senior guard Ella Reed, who scored a team-high 12 points, sank a jumper in the lane for a 2-2 deadlock. The Dalles then went on a 6-0 run to take an 8-2 advantage. In a low scoring first quarter, the Bruins played tough against a much taller Riverhawks team, trailing 8-4.
“We’ve had a lot of games canceled because of snow, so it’s been hard to get some games played,” said Reed, one of five senior starters for an experienced Bruins squad. “Our shots just weren’t falling in the first quarter and there’s not much you can do about that, but we battled back pretty good.
“It was a good game with The Dalles, and I definitely think if we had a rematch, it would be a closer game.”
The Riverhawks took control of the game in the second quarter, and they built a double-digit lead at 14-4 after senior guard Veronica Robledo sank a free throw with 6:40 left in the quarter.
The teams then traded baskets, with the Riverhawks remaining on top 18-8. A 6-0 Riverhawk run extended the margin to 24-8. Reed sank a 3-point field goal in the final moments of the quarter, trimming the deficit to 24-11 at halftime.
The Bruins, guided by first-year Coach Justin Frazier, were not able to get any closer than 11-points for the remainder of the contest. The Bruins outscored the Riverhawks 11-10 in the third quarter, making it 34-22 after three.
“We played pretty hard, and we fought hard and I’m proud of the girls for playing tough,” said Frazier. “It was good to come here and play against a pretty good The Dalles team, because it will help us get ready to play our Trico League games. I’m hoping that we’ll be ready to go when we start our league schedule (Jan. 4 vs. Seton Catholic).”
Midway through the fourth quarter, the Riverhawks enjoyed their largest lead of the game when senior guard Natasha Muzechenko scored on a layup to make it 43-24 with 3:40 left. The Bruins fought back and outscored the Riverhawks 13-7 to trim the margin to 11 points. Columbia senior guard Sydney Aman (seven points) sank a 3-pointer from the top of the arc, making it 48-37 with 1:55 remaining in the contest.
Jeilana Stewart, who added seven points, said, “It feels so good to win and we’ve been working hard in practice and working on pressure defense and so making sure that we did it right was a really big improvement for us. I think we can do really well this year as long as we just continue pushing ourselves in practice and play aggressively and just be well focused and play hard in every game.”
The loss to The Dalles was Columbia’s third straight defeat. The Bruins lost 64-39 to the Class 3A No. 1-ranked Corbett High Cardinals (7-0) Dec. 12 at home, followed by a 62-33 loss at home to the Montesano High Bulldogs (3-1) on Dec. 14. Reed was supported in the scoring column by Maggie Ryan with six points.
The Bruins were hoping to snap their losing streak when they faced the Class 3A Riverside High Pirates (3-6) in a Dec. 20, non-league contest in Boardman (result was after the printed edition deadline). Columbia plays its next contest Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. on the road versus the Elma High Eagles (1-3) at Elma High School.
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