Marsh Valley girls defeat Timberlake for 3A title

The Idaho 3A girls basketball state championship game was a contrast of styles, matching Timberlake’s perimeter skill against Marsh Valley’s interior presence.

But while Marsh Valley’s post game was firing on all cylinders, Timberlake could not find its outside shooting touch.

In the end, the Tigers had no answer for Marsh Valley post Sarah Viehweg, who poured in 23 points as the Eagles rolled to a 64-47 victory Saturday at the Idaho Center at Nampa.

“I’m very pleased with the way the girls played,” Marsh Valley coach Kyle McQuivey said. “They hustled, they were disciplined and they played with mental toughness. We knew Sarah had to have a good game, so it was great to see her step up, especially in the first half.”

Marsh Valley seized control early by getting Viehweg involved on straight post-ups, back-shoulder lobs and cuts to the basket off pick-and-rolls. The senior, who has drawn interest from Idaho State University, scored 17 first-half points on 8-of-9 shooting as the Eagles grabbed a 37-22 halftime lead.

“I thought we came out pretty timid,” Timberlake coach Matt Miller said. “We didn’t really play like ourselves. But give Marsh Valley credit – they came out and really pounded it inside, and in the end, it was too big of a hole for us to dig ourselves out of.”

Viehweg, who was involved in an accident last summer, struggled to find her game for much of the season – including the first two state tournament games, where she scored 13 points combined. But she came through when it mattered most as the Eagles captured their first state title since 2005.

“It was tough for a while, but I had so much support from my teammates and from the community,” Viehweg said. “It felt good to have some control on the court today, but I couldn’t have done it without my teammates.”

While Marsh Valley was rolling, Timberlake was struggling to get anything going on offense.

The Tigers made just 2 of 10 attempts from the 3-point line in the first half and only shot 32 percent from the field for the game. Senior guard Kelly Madsen finished with 18 points, but no one else reached double figures for Timberlake (15-11).

“We played a little nervous,” Madsen said. “But we played tough in the second half, and we didn’t give up. I’m really proud of everyone for making it this far, even though we didn’t win.”

Jenna Hoffman scored seven points and grabbed eight rebounds for Timberlake and Ashly George chipped in seven points.

Jessica Dunn added 17 points – including five 3-pointers – for Marsh Valley, which finished its season 25-0.

Snake River 50, Priest River 28: Brylie Bair and Maddie Pilster combined for 29 points as the Panthers routed the Spartans (17-7) in the third-place game in Middleton.

Snake River led 17-8 after the first quarter and put the game away in the fourth, outscoring Priest River 19-4.

Melissa Trost had seven points and seven rebounds for the Spartans.

5A

Lewiston 37, Centennial 24: The Bengals slammed the door in the fourth quarter and beat the Patriots at the Idaho Center in Nampa for their second straight title.

Tisha Phillips scored a game-high 16 points and Karlee Wilson added seven points and six rebounds for Lewiston (22-4), which outscored Centennial 14-3 in the fourth.

The Bengals made all 16 of their free throws – 10 of which came in the second half. Lewiston beat Coeur d’Alene 43-39 in last year’s title game.

4A

Wood River 50, Moscow 34: Haylee Thompson had 18 points and 10 rebounds as the Wolverines claimed third place with a win over the Bears (11-12) in Timberline.

Moscow shot 22.4 percent from the floor and made just 2 of 12 3-pointers and 10 of 20 free throws. Taylor Anderson had nine points and 12 rebounds for the Bears.