Granger works way past Mabton

ZILLAH, Wash. — Sure, there’s some flash.

Mitchell Zapien will often take the ball between his legs while setting up a one-on-one move, Brandon Castro isn’t shy about launching a deep-3 pointer and Andrew Reddout has been known to follow up a nifty crossover with an equally eye-pleasing spin move.

But all of the Granger Spartans, from the top of their roster to the bottom, insist that the secret to their success — which presently includes a 22-0 record to go with league and district championships — is really no secret at all.

It starts, they say, when the gym is void of fans and the only sounds come from squeaking sneakers and coach Miguel Bazaldua’s whistle.

“Our practices,” Reddout said after Granger’s 71-60 conquest of Mabton in the SCAC District title game, “are so intense. We go at it, hard, every single day.”

Added Bazaldua, with a smile, “He’s right. We have to.”

The Spartans, who will take their glossy record and blue-collar approach to next week’s Class 1A state tournament as the SCAC’s No. 1 seed, provided further evidence Friday night in Zillah Alumni Gymnasium.

Led by Zapien’s 22 points and 11 rebounds, Brandon Oswalt’s 16 points and Reddout’s 11 points and 15 boards, Granger pulled away late against a team it had twice beaten by a combined five points with one of the wins coming in overtime.

The Vikings, 15-8, will be the district’s No. 2 entry in the 16-team, four-day tournament that starts Wednesday in the SunDome.

If the final margin indicated otherwise, the Spartans knew they had been in yet another closely-contested game — it was 44-44 late in the third quarter and 53-50 with 6:24 left in the fourth.

“The way we beat the crap out of each other in our league has to help us at state,” Bazaldua said. “We’ve taken everyone’s best shot, and somehow we’ve always found a way.”

This time it came largely on the boards, which Granger dominated 51-37, and with a defensive performance that saw the Viks shoot only 29 percent.

“Andrew,” Bazaldua said of the 6-foot-2 sophomore Reddout, “is our king of rebounding. At first it was Mitchell, but over the course of the year Andrew has pretty much established himself in that role.”

When Reddout missed the first shot of a one-and-one free throw opportunity with his team up three and 6:07 left in the game, Zapien rebounded and scored.

Mabton was still within 63-59 with 1:31 to play, and Reddout had fouled out, when Zapien emerged from a frenzied loose-ball scramble to score at 1:16.

Viking guard Kristian Carrasco made a free throw with 1:09 left, but Granger’s Matt James hit a bucket at 0:50 and Zapien followed with four unanswered foul shots to close it out.

“What rebounding is hustle and desire,” said Reddout, who had 10 boards at halftime. “If I don’t rebound, I’m hurting our team.”

Said Bazaldua, holding a souvenir strand of a net while his players collected their own, “This is such a great thing for these kids. It’s the first time Granger has ever won back-to-back district championships.

“I’m speechless, to tell you the truth. I’m not sure how we’ve done it.”

Derrick Nash scored 14 points to lead coach Brock Ledgerwood’s Vikings and reserve Tyler Herrera added 13 points and 10 rebounds.

2/26/10 Prep Basketball Roundup

Class 1B state tournament results can be found at www.tourneytown.com

All scores final unless noted

BOYS

Walla Walla 61, Eisenhower 54

KENNEWICK, Wash. — The Cadets couldn’t solve Wa-Hi in four tries this year and this time it ended their season. Gary Winston made 9 of 15 shots and scored 23 points and Michael Weisner collected 18 points and seven rebounds for the Blue Devils. Eisenhower led 43-42 early in the fourth quarter on Nathan Mount’s 3-pointer, but Walla Walla responded with an 8-1 run to pull away. Ryan Watson led the Cadets (17-9) with 17 points on 7-for-10 shooting, including a pair of 3-pointers, and Robert Bonser had 16 points and seven rebounds. Walla Walla (21-5) will play Kamiakin (19-6), a 49-48 semifinal loser to Mead, for a state berth today at 1 p.m.

WALLA WALLA — Gary Winston 23, Aguiar 0, Porter 1, Arias 6, Michael Weisner 18, James 5, Alden 0, Watson 8. Totals 20-38 17-24 61. EISENHOWER — Scott 2, Morioka 3, Lopez 5, Nathan Mount 10, Clayton 1, Ryan Watson 17, Robert Bonser 16. Totals 18-45 13-17 54.

Walla Walla — 61 Eisenhower — 54

Highlights: James Lopez (E) 8 assists; Bonser (E) 7 rebs; Weisner (WW) 7 rebs; Winston (WW) 4 assists.

Davis 59, University  52

KENNEWICK, Wash. — Backed by David Trimble’s all-around game and some cool-handed foul shooting, Davis’ boys extended their season another day with a 59-52 loser-out victory over University in the 4A regional tournament Friday night at the Toyota Center. Trimble scored a game-high 18 points, sinking 8 of 9 free throws, and added five assists, four rebounds and four steals for the Pirates, who led 33-24 at the break. Davis drew 24 fouls and converted 19 of 30 free throws for a 19-8 advantage at the foul line. James Carter had 13 points, going 5-for-5 from the field, and seven rebounds, and Devonte Luckett added 10 points and five rebounds for Davis. The Pirates (19-7) will face CBBN foe Richland (22-3) in a winner-to-state, loser-out game today at 1 p.m. at the Toyota Center. The Bombers, who have beaten Davis twice this season, fell to Gonzaga Prep in Friday’s semifinals, 56-45. Mead (19-5) and Gonzaga Prep (22-2) have clinched state berths and will meet in the title game at 5 p.m. today.

UNIVERSITY — Cornell 1, Donahue 2, Drury 0, Tony Tabish 12, Wakem 1, Kyle Bailey 15, Bill 0, C. Martin 0, Blaska 2, Mitchell 7, Z. Martin 3, Dahl 9. Totals 20-56 8-25 52. DAVIS — Marquis 9, Mendoza 5, Lopez 0, McClurkin 0, Devonte Luckett 10, David Trimble 18, James Carter 13, Kupp 4, Winckler 0. Totals 19-45 19-30 59.

University 13 11 10 18 — 52 Davis 16 17 11 15 — 59

Highlights: Carter (D) 7 rebs; Luckett (D) 5 rebs; Trimble (D) 5 assts, 4 rebs, 4 stls; Bailey (U) 12 rebs.

Granger 71, Mabton 60

GRANGER — Brandon Oswalt 16, Castro 2, Vivar 9, Mitchell Zapien 22, Andrew Reddout 11, James 4, Cortez 6, Cruz 0, Carpenter 1, Avalos 0. Totals 27-55 14-23 71. MABTON — Carrasco 7, Sanchez 8, Huecias 9, Derrick Nash 14, Rodriguez 0, Tyler Herrera 13, Johnson 6, Strickland 3. Totals 17-59 20-28 60.

Granger 23 15 10 23 — 71 Mabton 13 20 11 16 — 60

Shooting percentages — FG: Granger .490, Mabton .288; FT: Granger .609, Mabton .714. 3-point goals — Oswalt 2, Zapien 1, Nash 2, Herrera 3, Strickland 1. Rebounds — Granger 51 (Reddout 15, Zapien 11); Mabton 37 Herrera 10). Turnovers — Granger 15, Mabton 10.

GIRLS

Ellensburg 49, Othello 30

ELLENSBURG, Wash. — Deaira Gordon’s 18 points and 13 rebounds powered the Bulldogs, who avenged a loss to the Huskies two weeks ago. Andrea Bland kicked in 15 points and six rebounds for Ellensburg (16-5), who play Prosser (17-3) in a semifinal today at 7 p.m. at Wapato High School.

OTHELLO — L. Garza 5, Rodriguez 0, Mollotte 5, Quezada 2, A. Garza 0, Martinez 9, Kirkwood 9, K. Bullis 0. ELLENSBURG — S. Bland 5, Layman 0, Deaira Gordon 18, Kelly 0, Carlson 2, Morris 5, Andrea Bland 15, Gant 0, Quirk 2, Granato 2.

Othello 11 3 8 8 — 30 Ellensburg 13 17 7 12 — 49

Highlights: Gordon (E) 13 rebs.; A. Bland (E) 6 rebs.

Wapato 59, Ephrata 56

EPHRATA, Wash. — Rallying with a 22-13 fourth quarter, fifth-seeded Wapato eliminated No. 4 Ephrata 59-56 in CWAC district play Friday night. A.J. Yarlott scored a game-high 24 points and Hayley Strom added 16, and the two Wapato seniors combined for 15 points in the final period. The district tournament moves to Wapato today and the Wolves (15-7) will take on top-seeded East Valley (17-3) in a 5 p.m. semifinal.

WAPATO — H. Cordova 1, Macias 2, Draculan 0, A.J. Yarlott 24, Velasco 0, Lamebull 2, Haley Strom 16, Valencia 2, Blodgett 7, B. Cordova 0, Campos 5, Anderson 0. EPHRATA — Kelsey Yenney 12, Lutz 3, Weaver 0, Mallory Lotz 19, Smith 5, A. DeHoog 0, Buchert 8, K. DeHoog 3, Eisen 0, Boyd 0, Mad. Lotz 6,

Wapato 12 17 8 22 — 59 Ephrata 15 13 15 13 — 56

Six Yaks on Eastern all-star teams

YAKIMA, Wash. — Yakima Valley placed six players — three men and three women — on the Eastern Region basketball all-star teams announced Thursday.

The region co-champion women saw sophomores Rosetta Adzasu and Anna Marchbanks on the first team while another soph, Nicole DeRosier, made the second team.

Kati Isham of co-champ Walla Walla was named the region MVP for the second straight year and the Warriors’ Bobbi Hazeltine was named coach of the year.

On the men’s side, freshman guard Jordan Kidd was a first-team pick while sophomore Derrick January and freshman Damar Wilson made the second team. Spokane’s Griffon Jones was named MVP while teammate Chris Pynch, a Riverside Christian product, made the second team. Walla Walla’s Jeff Reinland was voted coach of the year.

Both YVCC teams will play in the NWAACC Tournament, scheduled for March 6-9 in Kennewick.

CWU home openers delayed

ELLENSBURG, Wash. — Rain and wet field conditions forced Central Washington University to delay its home softball openers until Sunday.

The four-game series with Western Oregon will now be played on Sunday and Monday, with Sunday’s doubleheader beginning at noon, and the Monday twin bill starting at 11 a.m.

Central is 0-2 overall, and Western Oregon is 1-0.

Ellensburg locales to host fans

ELLENSBURG, Wash. — Four Ellensburg businesses will host gatherings for Sunday night’s Central Washington-Western Washington basketball game, which will be televised live on FSN.

They include The Palace Cafe, The Tav, Wing Central and Wing Central’s Roadhouse Grill.

New York Pizza and Bar in Bellingham will also provide a friendly environment for Wildcat fans.

The game is scheduled to start at 7:04 p.m.

First Tee breakfast March 12

YAKIMA, Wash. — The third-annual First Tee of Yakima breakfast will be held March 12 at the Yakima Convention Center.

The event, to begin at 7:30 a.m., will feature two-time PGA Tour winner Brian Henninger as the featured speaker. More than 30 professionals from various other sports will also be in attendance.

Longtime Yakima resident and attorney Denny Colvin, a four-time Yakima City champion, will chair the event.

For registration or more information, contact Del Rankin at 949-6349 or www.thefirstteeyakima.org. Registration forms are also available at area golf pro shops.

The First Tee of Yakima is a non-profit organization that provides youth with golf instruction at local facilities and promotes character and life-enhancing values.

QB Club luncheon Monday

YAKIMA, Wash. — The Yakima Monday Morning Quarterback Club will hold its monthly luncheon Monday at 11:30 a.m. at Shari’s restaurant at 40th and Fruitvale.

Lunch service will be available, and the public is invited.

Bueno bags ace at Westwood

YAKIMA, Wash. –Anthony Bueno scored a hole-in-one at Westwood West Golf Course on Tuesday, sinking his tee shot on the second hole with an 8-iron.

David Row witnessed the shot.

Knight and Day

Sunnyside Christian boys bounce back from 19-point deficit to win ||

YAKIMA, Wash. — With 5:08 to play in the third quarter Thursday night, Sunnyside Christian  trailed Almira/Coulee-Hartline by 19 points.

The Knights were back on their heels, down on the scoreboard and destined, it seemed, for consolation play in the Class 1B state tournament.

 

PHOTO GALLERY

Click here for more photos from this event

Then Trevor Wagenaar hit a 3-pointer. And Kevin De Jong made two free throws.

And there wasn’t anything wrong with SC, it turned out, that a remarkable second-half rally couldn’t fix.

Capping the comeback was Steven Broersma, the Knights’ 6-foot-6 junior, who scored on a layup just before the buzzer to push Sunnyside Christian into the semifinals with a 55-53 victory in the SunDome.

The third-ranked Knights, 21-3 and riding a 16-game winning streak, will meet Wellpinit (22-3) tonight at 6.

“At halftime,” Broersma said as his jubilant teammates and fans rejoiced, “we just said we have to finally show up. We have to play hard and play like champions to have a chance.”

At that, it took SC awhile to reverse what had started as an encouraging performance only to turn into a 13-minute nightmare.

Ahead 13-8 after the first quarter, the Knights were outscored 25-4 in the second and then yielded eight of the first 10 points of the third.

That’s 35-6, in ACH’s favor, over a quarter-plus.

But Wagenaar, who hit 4 of 9 3-pointers and finished with 12 points in support of Broersma’s 15 and De Jong’s 14, ignited a 15-0 Sunnyside Christian run with his aforementioned 3-ball.

By the time point guard Steven Bosma hit two free throws with 1:20 left in the quarter, SC was within 38-35, only to have ACH score the final seven of the period.

Pounding the ball relentlessly inside to Broersma and the sturdy 6-6 De Jong (who had game-high 14 rebounds), the Knights finally pulled even at 50-50 on De Jong’s point-blank bucket with 3:06 to play.

Broersma made it 52-50 with a turnaround jumper from the lane at 1:36, after which the Warriors’ Cody Jess made a free throw at 1:25.

Derek Isaak, the game’s top scorer with 23 points, missed two foul shots at 0:41.5, and Broersma made one with 16.6 to play for a 53-51 lead.

ACH’s Thunder Wellhausen, however, was fouled while setting a screen for Isaak, and with 7.8 seconds left made two free throws to tie it.

Time, Sunnyside Christian.

“I wasn’t sure which option he (point guard Steven Bosma) would see,” coach Dean Wagenaar said. “We had three. The first was to kick it to Trevor in the corner, and he could catch and shoot or go to the basket. The second goes to De Jong at the high post, and he could shoot it or try to find Broersma. We didn’t think Steven would be open, because they usually protect the basket in that situation.”

But Bosma, who took an inbounds pass from Ryker Van Belle near midcourt, quickly found De Jong, who in turn located Broersma, and latter’s reverse layup precipitated a frenzied celebration.

“We ran it (the play) to perfection,” Broersma said, “just like we do every day in practice.”

Said Wagenaar, “It’s amazing what can happen when you become aggressive. And we lost a crazy game like this last year (51-49 to Cusick). So it was nice to get this one.”

Sunnyside Christian, which won Class B titles in 1992, 2002 and 2005, won the first two 1B crowns in 2007 and 2008 before finishing seventh last year.

2/25/10 Sunnyside Christian-Almira/Coulee-Hartline Boys Photo Gallery

Photos from Thursday’s Class 1B state tournament game between Sunnyside Christian and Almira/Coulee-Hartline in the Yakima Valley SunDome in Yakima, Wash. Allphotos by Gordon King of the Yakima Herald-Republic.

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