West Valley headed to tournament

Fulfilling what basketball coach Jamie Nilles called its destiny, the West Valley High School basketball team got a do-over playing for the last time on the floor of its 43-year-old gymnasium.

“When we got our butts kicked by Gonzaga Prep on senior night, I thought that was our last varsity game here,” Nilles said. “It worked out where we got to come back and pay out for all those players who put these dead spots in this floor.”

Players throughout the gym’s history put a lot of blood, sweat and tears into the success of WV’s basketball program, Nilles explained.

“We wanted to leave our mark and finish off with a win,” he said.

And so it came to pass Tuesday night that the Eagles qualified for the State 3A Basketball tournament at home by defeating West Valley of Yakima 58-38 in the 3A Eastern Regional.

The Rams ran a patient offense, rebounded well and offset horrendous shooting from the field with a solid effort from the free throw line. It gave the Eagles, who made only 3 of 9 shots from the line, fits for a half.

But the Rams’ inability to score, hitting just 10 field goals in 42 tries, enabled West Valley to eventually pull away.

“We thought we were just going to come in and blow them out right of the top,” said Maurice Swan, who worked his way into the starting lineup the latter part of the season and was a big contributor.

WV led just 26-25 early in the third quarter before pulling away for a 49-31 advantage less than 10 minutes later.

The springy Swan was a reason with a dozen rebounds and six points.

“He does things that make you go (wow). Each game is just something different,” said Nilles. “When he settles in and plays and has confidence in himself, he’s tough to keep off the boards.”

The other challenge was to get Tyler Hobbs to become more inside conscious. He had made three 3-point first half baskets, but none inside and had no free throws.

“I told him if you don’t get your Montana football butt in there, root around and make something happen it’s going to be a long game,” said Nilles.

Hobbs had one more 3-point basket, but otherwise did as he was told, scoring twice inside and going 6-for-6 from the line to finish with 22 points.

Destiny fulfilled.

In girls 3A action, East Valley led after three quarters, but turnovers led to a 65-52 loss to Hanford. The Knights must now win games Friday and Saturday to reach state.

Both Bears advance

Central Valley’s boys and girls basketball team both won games on Tuesday night to advance to the regional tournament after a year’s absence.

The fifth-seeded girls (14-7) used their athleticism to good purpose on the road, defeating No. 4 Mead (16-5) 58-50 on the first night of District 8 4A basketball playoffs.

CV erupted in the first half, building a 33-20 lead behind the one-two punch of Heidi Heintz and sophomore point guard Justine Bowman. They combined for 39 points in the minor upset victory.

The boys (16-5) also eliminated Mead (9-12), overcoming a first-half 3-point shooting barrage by the visiting Panthers.

Mead made 9 of 13 long-range attempts and led 37-34 in the fast-paced first two quarters. But CV’s defense and tempo cooled the Panthers down. They scored only 14 second-half points.

Luke Clift, averaging nearly 16 points per game over his last seven, had his third 20-point game during the streak. Kevin Cameron added 12 points and the two combined for 11 assists.

CV’s girls play rival University (17-3) at home in tonight’s district semifinals. The Bears play Ferris (20-1) at University.

Knights are heavyweights

East Valley’s reputation as a wrestling heavyweight was further embellished after last weekend’s performance by Tyler Jolley.

Since 2001, the Knights have won three Mat Classic state 275-pound titles by unbeaten wrestlers and had one other finalist.

Jolley, who finished with a 37-0 season record and the 3A championship, joins 4A champions Courtney Howard (2001) and Justin Moody (2002) on the list. He came up one win short of tying their 38-0 marks.

Last year, Chris Helm finished second. The Knights first 275-pound champion was Myke Miller in 1978.

Jolley was one of four finalists and five placers for the state third-place finishing team.

Anthony Rivera, 112 pounds, Bryce Fisher, 145, and Clete Hanson, 171, finished second (see accompanying story) and Foster Orton, 160, placed fifth after reaching the semifinals.

Wrestlers shine at state

Although the numbers were down it certainly didn’t diminish the level of state success by Greater Spokane League 4A wrestlers.

Fourteen of the GSL’s 15 state qualifiers medaled last weekend at state, seven of them from University and Central Valley.

The Bears got a champion in junior 103-pounder Nick Cambron, but defending champ Lucas Chesher was beaten 4-3 at 140, unable to get a go-ahead third-period takedown.

“He won in overtime before so we knew it was going to be a tough match,” said CV coach John Owen. “Luke had a good tournament.”

Twice at state Cambron had to rally for victories, including a 10-8 overtime win in the final, a match he was trailing until 21 seconds remained.

His second reversal of the third period and overtime takedown won it.

Camren Ebat, fifth at 160 pounds, lost two two-point decisions, one in overtime, among the six matches he wrestled.

“We had high expectations and goals for ourselves, and we weren’t fulfilling those things,” said Owen. “The three kids we brought here raised their level of wrestling.”

Things didn’t go exactly as planned for University, either, but the Titans still placed four of their five state wrestlers and finished fourth in team scoring to secure another trophy.

“All year long we haven’t had the rabbit’s foot,” said coach Don Owen. “There were injuries and we didn’t get a lot of calls here. It was a tough year for us, but we took what the good Lord gave us and made something out of it. I’m proud of the kids.”

Sophomore Brian Owen, hoping to become a four-time state champion, saw his dreams dashed 4-2 in overtime at 112 pounds.

Lack of training and strength due to a broken lumbar vertebra hampered him against a bigger opponent.

“I told him I thought he’d be a four-time state champion and he did, too,” said his dad, John. “But sometimes things aren’t meant to be. It wasn’t the poor little guy’s fault that he woke up one morning with a broken back.”

Mike Malsam, finished third at 119 to cap his career in superb fashion. His state loss came in the semifinals, 5-3, and he had pins in his final two matches.

Fellow senior Nick Zumwalt also finished third, winning five straight matches after losing his first match in overtime on a missed call. He also had some curious stall calls in his placing match, but prevailed

“It would have been real difficult to beat (two-time champion Kurt) Swartz in the semifinals,” said Don Owen. “So, third place is a terrific effort.”

This, said Zumwalt, was his last tournament and he wanted to finish the way he had it in his mind that he would.

“Even though I didn’t take first, I’m pretty happy,” he said.

U-Hi’s Trevor Robb placed fifth at 152 pounds, his second medal in three years.

Mathews wins second

Freeman’s Danny Mathews completed a 43-1 season by winning his second straight 112-pound wrestling title.

Mathews medaled three years in the State 1A/B meet, finishing third at 103 pounds as a sophomore.

Teammate Jake Gunn reached the semifinals at 160 before finishing sixth.

McGahey places in finale

University gymnast Kayla McGahey finished fifth on the uneven bars with a 9.25 score in her high school state meet swan song.

She moved up a couple places with her Saturday routine after sharing sixth in the event during team competition.

All-around, McGahey scored 36.325 and tied for 12th. She was the Greater Spokane League’s highest finisher.

University placed eighth as a team in the nine-team 4A competition.