Photo by Steve Rogers Viking Anthony Sagen slips by a Mossyrock defender in Willapa Valley's season-ending district tournament loss last week.
Vikes, Gulls bow out at District
By GEORGE KUNKE
Willapa Valley stayed alive for one more game at the District IV Boys’ Basketball Tournament with a 67-41 win over Ocosta last Wednesday at Montesano.
“We started out kind of slow and listless, but really played well after the
first quarter,” Willapa Valley HS Head Boys’ Basketball Coach John Peterson told the Herald. “Anthony Sagen (9 pts, 6 asts), who is a real sparkplug for us, came in and speeded the game up considerately. He is a real go-getter and because he goes so hard everyone else must go hard to keep up with him.
“Stephen Camenzind was excellent for us, scoring 18 points and grabbing 14
rebounds,” Coach Peterson reported. “Matt Konigsberger had 12 points, eight boards and a very good overall floor game, David Rockett chipped in 10 points and some excellent defense, and Drew Pearson had eight points and eight rebounds in one of his best games.”
The Vikings led 10-9 after the first quarter and increased the lead to 31-21. Valley outscored Ocosta 13-11 in the third quarter and 23-9 in the fourth quarter.
Valley committed 16 turnovers.
The Wildcats closed out the season with a record of 10-12, while Valley upped its mark to 16-6.
Mossyrock 60, Willapa Valley 50
In a loser-out, winner to regionals game Willapa Valley was defeated by Mossyrock 60-50 last Friday night at Rochester.
Mossyrock led 10-8 and then went on a 10-0 to take a 20-8 after the first quarter. The Vikings from Lewis County led 34-24 at halftime. Valley sliced the margin to three points at 35-32 with 4:57 to go in the third quarter
The Vikings from Pacific County trailed Mossy 45-40 after three quarters. Randy Heckard’s J got WV to within a point (45-44) with 5:12 to play, but could never quite get over the hump. After trailing 50-48 Valley would get no closer. A basket by Sagen at the 1:30 mark put the score at 53-50, but MHS scored the games’ final seven points.
Rockett led Valley with 11 points and Sagen dropped in 10. Cody Buchanan, Camenzind and Konigsberger all scored six points.
Valley shot 43 percent from the field on 20 of 46. Mossyrock was at 42 percent (20 of 47). Mossy made 13 of 16 free throws and Willapa was 9 of 12.
Valley ended its season with a record of 16-7.
Wahkiakum 69, Raymond 33
Wahkaikum administered a 69-33 whipping to send Raymond packing for the season at Rochester last Wednesday. The Mules kicked out to a 20-8 lead and were never threatened.
The Pacific League champion Seagulls ended the campaign with a record of 16-6.
Raymond committed a season-high 28 turnovers.
Senior Carte Bisbee paced the Gulls with nine points. Senior Andrew Hamilton took down nine rebounds and Darol Ratsavongsy had seven boards and five steals.
The Seagulls shot 29 percent (15 of 52) and sank 1 of 5 free throws. Wahkiakum was 25 of 53 (47%) and 11 of 13 at the foul line.
“We really struggled against Wahkiakum,” Raymond head coach Mike Tully told the Herald. “Wahkiakum was able to jump on us early, and we never recovered. Wahkiakum shot the ball really well, and we shot very poorly. We were able to get some good, open looks, but we weren't able to convert, which meant that we couldn't get our press going.
“It was a pretty sloppy first half, with both teams committing 15 turnovers, but Wahkiakum cut down on their turnovers in the second half, while we continued turning the ball over,” Tully said. “We finished the game with 28 turnovers, which is double our season average. Combine the turnovers with 29 percent field goal shooting, and it equals an ugly night offensively.
“Defensively, we played well at times, but couldn't string together enough stops to cut into the lead,” Tully said. “District is a bad time to play a poor game. It was a disappointing finish to what was otherwise a solid season. Unfortunately, it was the last game for our two senior leaders, Carte Bisbee and Andrew Hamilton. Carte and Andrew have been a big part of the turnaround in the Raymond basketball program, and I thank them for all the dedication and hard work. Hopefully the young guys on the team can take the foundation that these seniors have laid and run with it.”