Post Falls boys sprint to win over Lakeland

The Post Falls High boys and girls basketball teams and their fans hogged most of the fun Thursday at the 10th annual Battle for the Prairie Pig.

The Post Falls boys used a 21-0 run over two quarters in the first half to knock the starch out of visiting Lakeland as the Trojans cruised to a 74-50 win in an Inland Empire League game before an estimated crowd of 2,500 at The Arena.

In the opener of the spirit doubleheader, the Post Falls girls rallied for a 31-25 win.

The Trojans made it a sweep when they won the spirit competition and were awarded the small, orange and green windup toy pig.

Lakeland’s boys looked as if they might snap their six-game losing skid in the opening 4 minutes. Senior guard Ryan Gallia scored nine points as the Hawks got out quickly. A 3-pointer by Phillip Viebrock pushed Lakeland’s biggest lead to 15-7 at the 3:35 mark.

But the Hawks went nearly a quarter – 7:26 to be exact – without scoring as Post Falls finished the opening period on a 13-0 run. A basket by Brandon Haas in transition extended the Trojans’ lead to 28-15 early in the second quarter.

Finally, Gallia made two free throws with 4:09 remaining before halftime to end the drought. Still, Lakeland wouldn’t score its first basket since the fast start until 9:05 had elapsed.

The Hawks found themselves trailing 33-17 after seven turnovers and six missed shots to open the second period.

Nine of 10 Trojans who saw minutes in the first half scored, and Post Falls made 15 of 30 shots from the field to take a 40-25 lead into halftime.

Even though it would get worse in the second half, the Hawks didn’t quit. They trimmed Post Falls’ lead to 40-30, but never got it under double digits.

The Trojans’ play was infectious. It seemed that every player coach Dave Stockwell put in the game contributed something positive.

“It was better intensity overall, and we hadn’t been getting that for a while,” said Stockwell, whose team improved to 8-4 overall, 1-2 in league. “That’s what we’ve been kind of missing – just that little spark early on. If we play for four quarters we’re athletic enough to play with a lot of people.”

Twelve of 14 players scored for the Trojans. Senior post Kyle Turpin, who had a crowd-thrilling dunk, led the balanced attack with 13 points. Haas, who also had a dunk, had 12, and Joe Bodman added 10.

Gallia and Viebrock led Lakeland (4-9, 0-5) with 13 points each. After interrupting Post Falls’ run with the free throws in the second quarter, Gallia, who came in averaging a league-leading 20.6 points, didn’t score another basket until making a 3-pointer midway in the fourth quarter.

The win gave Post Falls a league sweep over the Hawks. The Trojans handled Lakeland 73-28 just before the Christmas break.

But the win Thursday is one Stockwell hopes he’ll look back on at season’s end as the victory that ignited his team to a strong finish.

A similar win in the Prairie Pig last year got the Trojans going after a 1-5 start.

“Maybe it takes a game like this,” Stockwell said. “Last year before Christmas the game was like this and it kind of jump started us. They came out of Christmas a little excited. Hopefully this will do the same thing.”

The win also pulled the Trojans closer to Moscow (2-1 league) in the battle for seeding in the 4A Region I tournament.

“We’ve been after them since Christmas to play with some fire and intensity,” Stockwell added. “Tonight they showed it. I’m very happy.”