The Dalles boys’ and girls’ basketball teams both chalked up 5A state play-in berths and combined for five all-Columbia River Conference award winners by opposing head coaches.
Dakota Murr, Kailin Hoylman and Brooke McCall were named to the first team, and Jodi Thomasian and Eric Flores had their names called for second-team status.
As a first-team winner, Murr, a sophomore, averaged 20.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 2.4 assists per game.
He did this while shooting 41.5 percent from the three-point line, and 86.6 percent from the free throw line.
In league play, Murr tallied 26 points per game and added nearly 10 rebounds, including a 53-point, 15-rebound explosion in a 75-68 road victory against Hood River Valley.
On three occasions, Murr scored 30 points or more and he notched 39.6 points a game in three games against Hood River Valley, adding double figures in all nine league matchups.
“Moving forward, we are going to continue developing his playmaking and defensive skills to complement his scoring, as well as working on developing his leadership skills,” said The Dalles head coach Nathan Morris. “The future is very bright for Dakota, and I look forward to one more year working with him.”
For Flores, the steady guard had his biggest offensive stretch in three consecutive games versus Hood River Valley and Hermiston with an average 13 points, posting a high of 17 points in a game against Hermiston on Feb. 6.
Outside of league play, a Dec. 6, 2016 win over White Salmon, Wash., Flores swished eight 2-point field goals, one three-pointer, and hit on 5 of 5 free throws for his career-high 24 points, 16 coming in the second half.
The senior guard also tacked on 11 rebounds and eight assists, nearly hitting his first-career triple-double.
Flores saved one of his best performances for last, scoring 22 points on Feb. 23 at home on senior night against Crook County, a 57-44 triumph.
In TD’s seven wins, Flores averaged 15 points a game and the team averaged 65.7 points in those games.
“Eric put in a ton of work this offseason to improve his game and it paid off during the season,” Morris added.
With Flores, Dawson Hoffman, Johnny Miller and Dominique Seufalemua leaving the program due to graduation, Morris has the tough task of filling those roles with some underclassmen and incoming freshmen in the future.
“We are going to miss our seniors tremendously,” Morris said. “They brought so much heart and passion to the game.”
In her last season as a Riverhawk roundballer, McCall surpassed double digits in the scoring column seven times, finishing with 12 points and 6.4 rebounds a contest in league tilts.
Those numbers were surges from last season, where she scored 10.4 points, and added 5.5 rebounds, 2.1 assists, two steals and 1.2 blocks a game.
McCall scored 14 points in games against Hood River Valley and Pendleton, but posted a season-high 21 points and nine rebounds in a league matchup on Jan. 27, a loss to Pendleton.
With a season-ending injury to Iliana Telles, Hoylman ended up being entrusted to run an offense scored 43.3 points a game and finished with nine wins and punched a state play-in berth.
As a playmaker, Hoylman dished off five or more assists in seven games, hitting a season-high nine in a win on Jan. 31 against Hood River Valley.
On Feb. 6, Hoylman rattled off 18 points, and then eight days later, the senior notched 16 points and tallied seven assists in a matchup versus Hermiston.
She nearly scored 10 points a contest in CRC action, going for 9.9 points a game, and she had six assists a matchup.
As a junior on a girls’ roster that featured five seniors, Thomasian proved that she could take the reins as a future leader and post presence next year for the Riverhawks.
Thomasian made her biggest contribution in a one-point loss to Pendleton on Feb. 17 with 16 points and five rebounds.
She also had a 12-points, four-rebound effort on Jan. 31 in a league victory over Hood River Valley.
All told, Thomasian kicked in 6.7 points, 4.6 rebounds, 1.2 steals and 1.3 assists in nine league contests.
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