McKenzie Sports Report – February 5

McKenzie Varsity Sports Schedule This Week

The McKenzie Varsity Boys and Girls Basketball teams host Riddle on Tuesday, February 3. The Varsity Boys game is scheduled for a 5:30 pm start and the Varsity Girls game will follow at 7:00 pm. A Junior Varsity Boys game will precede at 4:00 pm.

The McKenzie teams travel to Eddyville Charter on Thursday, February 5. The Varsity Boys will tip-off at 5:30 pm and the Varsity Girls will start at 7:00 pm. A Junior Varsity Boys game will precede at 4:00 pm. McKenzie hosts Oakridge on Saturday, February 7. A Junior Varsity Boys game is scheduled for a 2:00 pm start. The Varsity Girls game will tip-off at 3:30 pm and the Varsity Boys game follows at 5:00 pm.

McKenzie hosts Siletz Valley on Tuesday, February 10. The Varsity Boys game starts at 5:30 pm and the Varsity Girls game will begin at 7:00 pm.

Scrappy Eagles Claw Out Two Victories!

The McKenzie Varsity Boys Basketball team scraped, scrapped and opened up the throttle on their fast break style offense and the Eagles found a way to earn a couple of hard fought Mt. West League wins. Fact of the matter, it was the first time this season the Eagles notched back-to-back victories. The pair was the first since McKenzie Head Coach Neil Barrett’s squad since a January 6, 51-33 win, at Siletz Valley.

Since then, McKenzie had suffered six consecutive lopsided defeats. That’s what made last Thursday’s, January 29, inspired effort coupled with a loud, enthusiastic fan support, and a very welcome turn of events for the Green and the Gold.

The Cougars of Crow/Northwest Christian Academy arrived in Finn Rock at the top of the Mt. West League standings (2-0), sporting a good 47-45 win over Alsea and a 58-26 victory over winless Siletz Valley. The Eagles on the other hand, had not earned a MWL victory in the interesting arrangement this season where each Mt. West League team plays one League game and one non-league game.

McKenzie got off to a good jump right after the opening tip, scoring the first six points of the game. The Cougars were able to get on the board with a free-throw with 5:30 left on the score clock and their first 2 point bucket at the 5:30 minute mark. Meanwhile, the Eagles were on the run and pressing the paint with their first quarter weapon, sophomore forward Jacob Norlund, who was dominating the offensive boards, effectively out rebounding and hitting his put backs over the taller Cougar defenders. Norlund’s offensive output scored 14 of McKenzie’s 18 first quarter points and the Eagles led 18-12 at the end of the same.

The second quarter evidenced the same intensity by both teams, ie., rebound and outlet down the court on a fast pace attempt to beat the competition to the opposite rim. It worked much better for the home team and McKenzie extended its lead by 15, 25-12, at which time the Crow bench called a time-out to regroup.

The Cougars would outscore their hosts 12-11 the rest of the second quarter, but the Eagles, by matching their first quarter 18 points, enjoyed a halftime lead of 36-24.

McKenzie sophomore Amir Enfield and senior Will Meister relieved teammate Norlund on the offensive attack, scoring 7 points and 5 points respectively, during that second quarter. Meister, the Eagle’s outside 3-point shooter, did not find the bottom of the net on any of his long-range shots this night, and had to settle for scores from the free-throw line and short range. Meister hit 3 of 4 from the stripe plus a lay-up for his 5 points in the second quarter while Enfield scored 2 buckets and was 3 of 4 from the charity line.

The third quarter pace didn’t relax much for either team, however, the Cougars were able to find way to tighten up the score, stitching together a 17-9 run on the Eagles.

Enfield matched his second quarter output by scoring 7 points to lead the Eagles in the third quarter, and senior forward Jacob Peek added the only other McKenzie points, with one bucket.

So, now we had a game, for sure, with the scoreboard reflecting McKenzie, 45, and Crow, 41, at the start of the fourth quarter. A good battle ensued, Crow giving it a good shot and the Eagles giving it right back. The Cougars, try as they might, could never get any closer than the four-point difference, the rest of the way. But no one in the building was comfortable with the difference until the final horn, and then McKenzie, alone, would breathe a sigh of accomplishment.

Truth to be told, both teams laid it all out on the court, and had reason to hold their heads high for the effort. The final winning score of 55-48 went to McKenzie.

For the night overall, Jacob Norlund finished with 20 points, Amir Enfield added 19 points, Will Meister scored 5 points, junior Rhys Hamlow and senior Jacob Peek each added 4 points, and sophomore Andrew Munoz-Brown finished with 3 points.

Senior guard Cayden Hernandez who scored 11 points led crow. Cougar senior forward Aiden De Leon added 9 points, junior Tremaine Woodard with 8 points, senior Alex Seiler finished with 7 points, senior Austin Winings with 6 points, senior Foster Otley with 5 points, and freshman Carter Davis added 2 points.

The next evening, Friday, January 30, the home fires in Finn Rock had not cooled off. And this time the recipient of that heat was the 2-0 Alsea Wolverines. Adding fuel to the warm occasion was the earlier defeat at the hands of the Wolverines in the Valley of the Alsea, 48-69, back on January 13.

McKenzie completed the two game sweep, beating back a fierce Alsea attack, winning 50-48. And although the Eagles evened the score, game-wise, this last one was the non-league contest and will not figure in the finals Mt. West League standings. But in a season of growth, this was a welcome turn of events for Eagle Boys Hoops.

McKenzie has four remaining games on their Regular Season Schedule. Two non-league contests with Riddle and Oakridge and two counting, MWL contests against League leader Eddyville Charter (there) and with Siletz Valley (home). The OSAA State rankings have Eddyville Charter at 11th, 4-0 in the latest MWL standings and 16-4 overall. Could, per chance, those Coastal Eagles be looking past their upland cousins? An additional ponder, what if McKenzie added a little pitch to their current fire and applied the heat to their remaining opponents? Still Winter by all accounts, so there doesn’t seem to be a good argument for not stoking the fire. Flame on Eagles!

Cougars and Wolverines Extend Eagle Losing Streak

The Crow Cougars and the Alsea Wolverines, two Mt. West League teams on the prowl, seeking a girls basketball victory, dropped in for a Finn Rock visit last week and the two bared their teeth as they walked away with a couple of lop-sided victories respectively.

Thursday’s game with Crow started out slow for both squads, the Cougars out pointing their Eagle hosts 8-4. Freshman point guard Ally Peek hit the first Eagle bucket halfway through the first quarter and junior Liliana Jones dropped in the second with a couple of minutes remaining.

The Cougars discovered their compass in the second quarter and effectively took control of the game, outscoring the home team 21-7 in the second on the way to a 29-11 halftime margin.

Peek scored the lone Eagle second quarter basket and the balance of the McKenzie points came from the free-throw line. Eagle sophomore Claire Weiss finished the quarter 5-8 at the charity stripe.

The third quarter was more of the same with the Cougars still rolling, out pointing the Finn Rock gals 15-4, and establishing a 44-15 third quarterfinal margin. McKenzie sophomore Courtney Garrelts scored the lone Eagle third quarter bucket Claire Weiss added 2 free throws.

The Cougars opened up the bench in the final period, but only scoring 2 points. McKenzie added 8 points, 4 points from Claire Weiss, and Jones adding the other 4 points.

Final Score: Crow 46, McKenzie 23.

For the game, Claire Weiss led her Eagle teammates with 11 points, Jones added 6 points, Peek finished with 4 points and Garrelts scored 2 points.

A pair of freshmen, Millie Herbison and Tryniti Kelly, each finishing with 10 points, led the Cougars. Freshman Maddi Okari added another 9 points and sophomore Emma Green dropped in 3 points. Sophomore Zivah Eschenberg, juniors Elsee Otley and Ryleigh Coats-Christianson, and freshman Elly Nix, all scored 2 points.

The very next evening, McKenzie opened the gym doors to Alsea. The Wolverines are 2-1 in Mt. West League play, 13-6 overall and chasing the MWL leader Mapleton, which is 5-0. Mohawk sits at 4-0, and Triangle Lake is 3-1. This contest, last Friday, however, was a non-league game and a non-counter towards the final MWL standings.

The Wolverines, this late in the regular season, are for sure looking to present their best at the MWL Tournament and hopefully OSAA First Round playoff opportunity. That being considered, Alsea put a lot of stake in this game and the Wolverine defense held the Eagles to their lowest offensive score of the season. Alsea didn’t need to throw a lot of points on the scoreboard thanks to their defense and the Wolverines made short work of their business upriver McKenzie, winning the game 37-6.