MAUPIN – Saddened to see her high school basketball career come to an end following a 37-24 state loss to Hosanna Christian Friday, South Wasco County senior Ana Popchock could only think of the positives from what it meant to be a part of something special.
It was more than wins and losses, however: Popchock and the Lady Redsides preached encouragement, leadership, accountability and work ethic to reach this point.
“These girls have been so great to be around. I am going to miss that the most,” Popchock said. “We were much more than just teammates, we were sisters, we were together like a family. When you have something like that in your life, it is so tough to lose it.”
No. 8-ranked SWC had started play on a 17-game winning streak and allowed 36 points a game in the last 10 games, so giving up 37 points against a high-powered Hosanna Christian squad appeared to be good enough to scratch out another win and a Baker City qualification.
Still without injured all-league post Jada Myers and reserve guard Jenna Wraught, the Lady Redsides could not sustain any offensive flow, missing several shot attempts in a season-low scoring output.
“It was a little frustrating because we couldn’t get our spacing down, so it kind of got us out of our game and we couldn’t score like we were used to,” SWC senior Katy Delco said. “We knew they played good defense, but we still had some good shots that we didn’t make.”
Down 9-2 at one point in the first quarter, the Lady Redsides rallied behind a 3-pointer and two free throws from Abby Birman, and a basket each by Madisen Davis and Destiny mora-Lopez to tie the score at 9-apiece.
Hosanna held SWC to one second-quarter field goal and finished the half on an 8-3 spurt to secure a 17-12 halftime lead.
“We didn’t have the best start. I think we had nerves and stuff, so it took us awhile to get going,” SWC senior Allie Noland said. “We were losing by five points, but I think we all believed we had a chance to come back.”
In the third quarter, the Lions posted a 14-10 margin for a 31-22 lead and made three field goals, while holding the Redsides to one, a basket by Birman, to seal the victory.
In all, Hosanna totaled 15 field goals, one 3-pointer, and converted 6 of 12 free throws, as Kya Nelson tallied 12 points, Shielteal Watah went for 11, six in the second half, and Kirsten Tuttle chipped in 10 points, two in the second half.
Birman racked up 11 points, Mora-Lopez notched four and the quartet of Popchock, Davis, Noland and Kiana Moody ended up with two points each.
“I am so proud of every player on this team,” SWC head coach Lynn Cowdrey said. “This is just one game. I mean, it’s tough because it is season-ending loss, but this game is by no means a downer on what this group of ladies were able to accomplish. They came together, encouraged each other and made the game fun in practices and in games. You cannot replace that.”
The Redsides had one of their best seasons in program history with 23 wins, including 17 in a row, a No. 8 ranking, a Big Sky Conference championship and four players picked up all-league recognition, including Noland, who was the Player of the Year.
As Noland, Popchock, Moody and Delco are moving on to graduation, the varsity roster saw some dynamic performances across the board by three freshmen and four juniors.
The team will have plenty of height inside with Mora-Lopez and Myers, a steady point guard in Birman at the controls, and all-around stalwarts like Davis and Kyrsten Sprouse returning, with a few highly-touted incoming freshmen.
“I think we can be even better in the next couple of years. We have a bunch of girls that can do a lot of things good,” Moody said. “I hate that my career is over, because this team definitely has the talent to make it as far as they want. I hope this season gets them wanting more and more. It will take a lot of work, but they can do it.”
Noland has college plans after she graduates, but the foundation of her character has been built through her involvement in school activities and athletics.
Pretty much all the skills learned from playing on a team will help her as she moves toward life outside of Maupin.
“Being on a team with people that I love and coaches that I love is super-inspiring and it pushes me to be a better person, athletically, academically, socially and in general, so it has made me the person that I am,” Noland said.
Noland is hopeful that whatever knowledge the seniors passed on will be used to keep the program going on its upward swing.
“Just playing on a team with my sisters and my friends, even the freshmen, it is fun and it also pushes me and makes me want to push other people,” Noland said. “With the girls coming up, it is important to have strong leaders and people they can look up to, so we just wanted to be those types of people for them.”
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