This story was updated at 9:45 p.m. March 12 with information on Philomath's next opponent.
In a Class 4A state playoff showdown between a pair of Oregon West Conference rivals on Thursday afternoon in Forest Grove, No. 1 Stayton worked through a slow start and pulled away from No. 8 Philomath for a 41-26 quarterfinal victory.
The Warriors (15-11) drop into the consolation bracket and will play at 9 a.m. Friday against No. 4 Marist Catholic. Stayton (22-3), the defending state champions, advance to the semifinals to play the Henley, which beat Marist, 46-41.
“We never got into a rhythm on offense,” PHS coach Ben Silva said. “You’ve got to give credit to Stayton’s defensive effort. They make every look difficult. They are just consistent on both sides of the ball.”
The game opened with a fair number of turnovers and neither team doing much offensively through the first five minutes. Stayton junior Zuri Andersen hit a 3-pointer 58 seconds into the game but the next field goal wasn’t made until Eagles junior Molli Emmert hit a layup at the 3:03 mark.
Philomath’s first basket came seconds later at 2:41 when senior Shaylee May buried a 3-pointer to tie the game, 7-7. The Warriors then went up 10-7 on a 3-pointer by sophomore Reagan Nuño. After Stayton got two points back, junior Reagan Heiken converted on a layup with an assist by May for a 12-9 lead with 45 seconds left in the quarter.
The Eagles tied the game quickly coming out for the second quarter on a 3-pointer by senior Makenzie Schacher. Points continued to be difficult to come by for both teams. Stayton went up by two on a couple of free throws at 5:07 and then extended its advantage to 17-12 on a traditional three-point play by junior Kathryn Samek at 4:09.
Meanwhile, Philomath couldn’t find the hoop until 1:50 remained in the half when junior Jordyn Hood scored on a layup with an assist going to May. Stayton’s Kathryn Samek countered with a putback hoop at 1:13 for a five-point lead and the Eagles later added a 3-pointer by sophomore Laela Hunt to lead 22-14 at the half.
Philomath shot just 21.1% in the first half and 12.5% in the second quarter — a lot of that tough luck occurred close to the basket with layups rolling off the rim on several occasions. The Eagles had a 41.2% success rate from the field through the first two quarters.
The Warriors got the deficit down to six in the opening seconds of the third quarter when May drew a foul and sank a pair of free throws. But Stayton went on a 6-0 run to go up 28-16.
Stayton’s offense quieted down at that point but the Warriors were not able to take advantage of the opportunity to get back into the game. Heiken hit a shot midway through the third and later had a couple of free throws but the Eagles took a double-digit lead into the fourth at 30-20.
Within the first 30 seconds of the fourth, Andersen buried a 3-pointer for a 33-20 lead and the Warriors were not able to recover.
Philomath’s second-half shooting wasn’t much better than the first half at 25.0%. The Warriors ended up at 22.9% from the field for the game. Heiken was the team’s top scorer with nine points. May added seven.
Kathryn Samek led the Eagles with 17 points, a performance that included 9 of 11 from the foul line. As a team, Stayton shot 33.0%.
Elsewhere on the stat sheet, Philomath had a 33-27 edge on the boards, led by six each by May and junior Annaleise Brown. May also had a team-high four assists.
On the other side of the tournament bracket, No. 6 St. Helens beat No. 3 Seaside, 40-33, and No. 2 Baker downed No. 7 Cascade, 35-25.
Forest Grove 41, Philomath 26
Thursday, March 12, at Forest Grove HS
PHILOMATH (26)
Reagan Nuño 1 0-0 3, Annaleise Brown 1 0-0 2, Shaylee May 1 4-4 7, Jordyn Hood 1 1-2 3, Reagan Heiken 3 3-4 9, Isabelle Muir 0 0-0 0, Libby Kramer 1 0-0 2, Bethany Cannon 0 0-0 0. Totals 8 8-10 26.
STAYTON (41)
Kourtney Samek 0 0-4 0, Makenzie Schacher 2 0-0 6, Breeci Hampton 0 0-0 0, Kathryn Samek 4 9-11 17, Zuri Andersen 3 2-4 9, Mila Morley 1 0-0 2, Laela Hunt 2 0-0 5, Khloe John 0 0-0 0, Molli Emmert 1 0-2 2. Totals 13 11-21 41.
Team 1 2 3 4 F Philomath (15-11) 12 2 6 6 26 Stayton (22-3) 9 13 8 11 41
3-Point Goals—Philomath 2 (May, Nuño), Stayton 4 (Schacher 2, Andersen, Hunt). Fouled Out—May. Total Fouls—Philomath 14, Stayton 15. Technicals—None.