The Nugget Newspaper - News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon

The Lady Outlaws basketball squad hosted their annual Holiday Tournament Wednesday through Friday, December 28-30. Teams traveled from around the state including 3A Banks, and 4A Crook County, Gladstone, Henley, Junction City, Klamath Union, La?Grande, Madras, and Mazama.

Sisters suffered a 57-40 loss against Junction City in their first game of the tournament.

In the first quarter Haleigh Froehlich got Sisters on the board two minutes into the period when she drove the key for a lay-in to make it a 2-6 game. The Tigers got numerous points off Outlaws turnovers and kept them scoreless until Ashlynn Moffat scored a layin off a Delaney McAfee assist with less than a minute left in the period. At the end of one, the Outlaws trailed 4-19.

Sisters came back in the second quarter and outscored the Tigers 16-13, but couldn’t get ahead due to the first-quarter deficit. Jenna Lake scored seven points in the period, Haleigh Froehlich contributed six, and Moffat added three. At the half the Outlaws were down 20-32.

In the third McAfee came off the bench and sparked the Outlaws’ offense with two baseline long balls, but Sisters couldn’t stay with the Tigers, who continued to extend their lead. At the close of the third period, the Tigers held a 22-point advantage.

Sisters was able to hold the Tigers scoreless for four minutes in the final period, but they failed to hit their shots, and the Tigers were able to score down the stretch to secure the win.

Froehlich led the Outlaws with 15 points. Moffat scored nine, Lake contributed seven, and McAfee pitched in with five.

Patton said, “I was really impressed with Ashlynn’s all-around game, especially her assertiveness as a scorer. Haleigh was outstanding as well, in particular getting to the free-throw line, where she was seven-for-eight.

“The main reason for the loss was too many turnovers both against their full-court press and half-court defense,” added Patton.

Sisters was scheduled to play against Klamath Union on Thursday, but the game was canceled as Klamath Union decided not to travel in the snow.

On Friday the Outlaws matched up against 4A La?Grande (LG), and lost in a final score of 30-52. Sisters tried a different lineup and had Josie Patton take over at the point guard position. Shae Wyland joined the starting lineup to help strengthen the Outlaws’ defense and rebounding effort, which proved to be effective in the first quarter.

Sisters stayed close to La?Grande in the first quarter and only trailed by two, 7-9, at the close of the period. The Tigers’ first seven points all came from the free-throw line, and with just seconds left they scored a bucket to take the lead.

In the second period, the Outlaws’ defense was a bit disorganized and the Tigers put up 18 points in the quarter. At the half the Outlaws were down 15-27.

Lake hit back-to-back threes to start the third quarter, which sparked the Outlaws, but the Tigers continued to attack the basket and extend their lead. At the close of the third, the Outlaws trailed 25-41. Sisters was only able to score five points in the final quarter, and the Tigers recorded the win.

OLIVIA KENNEDY

Driving up the floor...

Turnovers once again were a big problem for the Outlaws, as they turned the ball over 20 times on 37 possessions.

Lake led the Outlaws with 13 points, seven of those in the third quarter. Froehlich was strong for the Outlaws on the inside and at the free-throw line and finished the game with nine points.

Patton said, “We are still trying to find our stride on the offensive end of the court with only one quarter of double-digit scoring, which was 10 in the third. They played pressuring half-court defense and we found it hard to get good shots. The good news is that we were fully healthy for the first time in weeks. If we can stay that way and get a few good practices under our belts we should be competitive in the games to come.”