PHOTO COURTESY OF HHS ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT
Year in, year out, there are certain things Hermiston residents can count on: Wind in the spring, sweet-tasting watermelons in the summer, gorgeous fall weather, and the girls high school basketball team advancing far into the state tournament each winter.
The 2013-14 Hermiston High School girls hoops team didn’t disappoint, finishing third in the 5A tourney in Eugene – just as they did a year ago.
This year’s squad wrapped up their season with a 62-55 win over Lebanon to cap off a 22-5 season that included a 9-0 run through the Columbia River Conference. The Bulldogs were led in the third-place game by Shelby Sanders’ 29 points and Jansen Edmiston’s 15 points.
Head coach Steve Hoffert said his team fulfilled most of the team goals.
“We started setting our season with high goals,” he said. “We wanted to win a conference title, then go to Eugene and then play for the championship.”
Hermiston entered conference play in January full of confidence after a close 55-50 loss to Beaverton on January 17.
“At that time, they were ranked third in 6A and they had such an amazing atmosphere,” Hoffert said. “After that, our confidence grew and the bar was set even higher for us.”
The Lady Bulldogs opened conference play with a comfortable 56-39 win over The Dalles and followed that up with a 77-21 blow-out road win at Hood River Valley and never looked back. After wrapping up the CRC title with a 57-34 win over The Dalles, Hermiston was ready to make a deep run in the state tourney.
The Lady Bulldogs got off to a solid start by getting past Silverton, 62-52. Sanders poured in 24 points and Edmiston added 20 for the Bulldogs. Up next was a quarterfinal game against Sherwood on March 12. It was a low-scoring, defensive battle with the Bulldogs dominating with a 46-24 win.
Taking an 11-game winning streak into the semifinals, Hermiston had hopes of advancing to the championship game, but those hopes were dashed in a decisive 48-28 loss to Corvallis.
But just as they did a year ago, the Lady Bulldogs bounced back with a victory two days later to claim third place in the state tournament. Hoffert said there was one key to the Bulldogs’ success this season.
“Our defense kept us in games even when our offense struggled . . . our work ethic was beyond amazing and we continued to grow as a team because of that,” he said.
Hoffert, who was named the Coach of the Year in the CRC this season, gives a lot of credit to his supporters and fan base.
“It always feels good to get recognized for your efforts but when I get these awards, my team puts me in that position and I’m grateful for that,” he said. “From the girls to the coaches, I can’t thank them enough.”
McKenzie Byrd and Sara Ramirez were named first-team all-league and Edmiston and Sanders were named second-team all-league.
Hoffert is looking forward to the future with the team in pursuit of a similarly successful season next year, despite the loss of seniors Byrd and Sanders.
“We are losing two talented bigs,” he said. “We are going to utilize our strengths for next year.” Hoffert said the team goal will be to make another run in the state tournament, but if so, it won’t be in Eugene.
The OSAA executive board last month finalized its state championship committee’s plan to relocate the big-school tourneys to smaller, cost-reducing venues beginning next season. The OSAA cut ties with the University of Oregon’s 12,364-seat Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene, moving the Class 5A boys and girls tournaments to the smaller 9,600-capacity Gill Coliseum on the Oregon State University campus in Corvallis.
More Stories from Northeast Oregon Now:
District Seeks to Deliver Diploma 87 Years Later
Irrigon 7-Year-Old Dies in Hermiston Crash
