Overtime win puts Lady Wolves ahead of Mabton
Andrew Christiansen
Reporter
What a night for the Timberwolves! Although there are still five games left in the season, Saturday night’s games against Mabton were crucial and both Goldendale teams came up huge to move into second place in the SCAC west.
Goldendale’s girls made the fans sweat before eking out a 62-58 win in overtime. The game actually started as a blow out as Goldendale won the first quarter shoot-out 21-6 behind two three-pointers by Alex Counts and a steady diet of Sadie Shattuck on 8-foot jump shots. Even more remarkable in the wide open quarter, which saw Mabton go 1-7 on threes, Goldendale had zero turnovers.
Mabton got their ball control game under control in the second quarter, and Crysta Reynolds went to work for eight points, but the Vikings were again 1-7 from beyond the arc. Shattuck scored another eight points and Goldendale led by 17 at the half, 35-18.
The Vikings trimmed the lead to 12 in the third quarter when Goldendale had difficulty getting the ball to Shattuck within shooting range. Mabton passed up the three-pointers in the fourth quarter to drive inside for several easy buckets, and were quickly back in the game. The Viking press forced six Timberwolf turnovers and Coach Ginger Plum called time with 5:21 left and Goldendale clinging to a 44-41 lead.
Lexi Cameron quickly hit a three-pointer, her second of the game. Goldendale was still up 49-47 with 2:39 left when Alex Counts fouled out and Jazzee Sustaita tied the game on free throws. Less than a minute later, Goldendale lost Tate Bailey on fouls and Mabton had their first lead. Shattuck evened it at 51 and Kyley Montgomery stole the ball and scored with 30 seconds left.
Cameron hit one of two free throws and Mabton was down by three with seven seconds left. It looked like the Vikings would not get a shot off before Reynolds threw up a hope and a prayer from the top of the arc that banked in true at the buzzer for the tie.
It was gut check time for the Wolves, having blown a 17 point lead and losing two of their starting five to fouls. A boost came when Montgomery stole the ball again and Reynolds fouled out of the game. Goldendale hit 5-10 from the free throw line in the four minute overtime and escaped with a four point victory that put them solidly into second place.
The boys’ game was also exciting, after Goldendale built an eight point lead in the first quarter and held on for a 74-64 win. First quarter shooting was a hot 10-19 for Goldendale with Kaden Milliren scoring eight points and Reed Lindhe and Chase Wing chipping in seven points each. Jesus Huecias started strong for Mabton with slick penetration to the hoop for six points, but he wasn’t a factor the rest of the way.
Goldendale played a tough man-to-man defense for much of the game, preventing drives to the hoop and discouraging three-point shots. Lindhe pulled down 14 rebounds and scored 20 points. Goldendale was 60 percent from the floor and outscored the Vikings 16-4 from the free-throw line. Milliren was 5-6 from the charity stripe in the fourth quarter and had 17 points for the game.
Goldendale, tied for second, plays their final five games on the road, starting with Highland this Friday and Cle Elum in a special match-up in the Yakima SunDome on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. Tickets are $7 if purchased at Goldendale High School, or $9 at the gate.
Lady Pirates stun TLG behind Star Kibby’s 30 point night
Andrew Christiansen
Reporter
A pair of weekend wins by Bickleton’s girls sent a message that they will be included in the battle for one of the top two places in the Columbia Gorge League.
The Lady Pirates had an easy time with Yakama Tribal on Friday night, as Katelynn Clinton scored 29 points and 11 rebounds in a 69-35 victory. Quickness did the trick for the Pirates who pressed for much of the game, causing the Eagles to cough up 36 turnovers.
Clinton, who was nearly perfect with 5-6 shooting in the first quarter, came out even better in the third with 6-6 shooting and three, three-point plays on baskets plus foul shots. Amanda McBride was also a perfect 2-2 in the opening quarter. Star Kibby was credited with seven steals and Jamie Venema had 11 rebounds.
The next night was Kibby’s turn to be the star. The Bickleton guard ran wild against TLG in Glenwood, stealing the ball eight times and scoring 30 points. on 13-22 shooting.
It was a hot night overall for the Pirates who were 59 percent from the field. The Pirate pair of Kibby and Clinton outscored TLG’s Liz Vogt (26) and Katie Yarnell (17) 50-43 on the way to a 66-56 Pirate victory. Nine of Clinton’s 20 points came from the foul line on 9-11 shooting. Aymie Osborne added 10 points for Bickleton and Ashley Barrett scored 10 for TLG.
The teams were tied for third with 2-2 records behind 4-0 Sunnyside Christian and 3-2 Klickitat. A make-up game between the two teams was played in Bickleton on Wednesday.
Earlier in the week, Bickleton defeated Riverside Christian’s JV team 42-28. Morgan McBride led the way with nine points, Clinton had eight and Osborne scored six.
TLG lost to Horizon Christian last week, 40-37. Vogt had a double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds and Yarnell scored 13. They were defeated Jan. 22 by Sunnyside Christian 38-27. Vogt had 12 points and 12 rebounds in the game.
The Pirates host Sunnyside Christian on Friday in Bickleton. TLG tries to sweep second place Klickitat in Klickitat on Friday.
Wolves win second team bout, peaking for Districts
Andrew Christiansen
Reporter
With the District tournament right around the corner, Goldendale’s wrestlers showed they are beginning to peak with an impressive dual win against Mabton last Thursday and six medals at the Stevenson invitational on Saturday.
The falls came quicker and quicker, as Goldendale pinned four Vikings in a row after Wade Gaston’s opening win, a 17-0 technical fall over Alonzo Garcia at 145 pounds. Nolin Bare started the pin parade stopping Carlos Gastelum at 3:50. Next was Braydon Ross pinning Frank Martinez in just 1:24. Billy Monroe did it one better, taking out Noe Gutierrez in 1:09, but the best was yet to come. Kurt Wilkins had Bryan Arellano’s shoulders to the mat in a super-quick 36 seconds.
Kyle Ross battled Eric Huesca evenly into round three, but a take down and a couple of near-falls gave the Viking an 8-2 win. Jessica Carr had a win by forfeit before Kirk Giese lost by pin to Mabton’s Vincente Mireles.
The next four weight divisions went to Mabton via forfeit, bringing the score to 35-33 in favor of Goldendale. With the match on the line, Torey Spaulding-Jimenez built up a 6-0 lead before pinning Chris Roman with 35 seconds left in the match, giving Goldendale a 41-33 win.
Also wrestling in exhibition matches were Marcos Sanchez, who had a pair of pins, Zack Smith, who lost 13-7 and Zach Shattuck who also lost 18-1.
The wrestlers participated in the Stevenson invitational on Saturday with Wilkins leading the way. The sophomore went 3-0 at 189 pounds to capture first place. Three other Timberwolves were in title matches, all finishing second. They were: Spaulding-Jimenez, Braydon Ross, and Monroe. Third place medals were won by Giese and Bare. Austin Jones and Kyle Ross each went 1-2 at the tournament. Gaston was 0-2 and Sanchez and Smith were 0-1 in exhibition matches.
Goldendale’s wrestlers continued to tune up for the Feb. 6 District tournament in Granger. After a key match at Granger on Tuesday, the Wolves finish with a likely win against Highland this Thursday. A junior varsity meet in Zillah on Friday is a final chance for some wrestlers to get matches in at designated weights. |
