MOLALLA — The state tournament streak continues.
For the eighth straight season, the Philomath High girls basketball team will be among the final eight teams in Class 4A competing for a championship. The Warriors took care of business Saturday night at Molalla with a convincing 55-24 victory.
“You know, that’s always the plan but it’s not super easy,” PHS coach Ben Silva said about moving on to the tournament. “We’ve had two groups come through freshman and senior year and gone to the state tournament every single year. We don’t take it for granted and try and make sure we enjoy the experience.”
Gallery: PHS girls basketball at Molalla (March 7, 2026)
A collection of photos from Philomath High’s 55-24 girls basketball win over Molalla in the first round of the 4A playoffs on Saturday.
The experience will begin with a rematch against conference rival Stayton. The Warriors lost to the Eagles twice during the regular season, 45-37 and 41-36. And in last year’s 4A championship game, Stayton won the title with a 47-38 win.
“We played them twice and Silva keeps reminding us that it’s hard to beat a team three times,” junior Annaleise Brown said. “We were really close to them last game, so we’re excited for that game.”
Junior Jordyn Hood, who had a game-high 18 points in the win over Molalla, welcomes the challenge.
“We know what to expect,” she said. “I’m glad we get them early on.”
Silva said he’s excited to have another shot.
“We played them tough two times this year and they got us in the big one last year,” Silva said. “I think the girls are going to be ready to go.”
Philomath was certainly ready to play at Molalla on Friday evening. The Warriors dominated early and led 16-0 just 3-1/2 minutes into the game.
“Our focus was to come out with a lot of energy and execute on defense,” said Hood, who scored 10 of the first 12 points, a performance that included a pair of 3-pointers and a highlight assist when she passed behind her back on a fast break to Brown, who converted a layup.
Philomath basically put on a clinic on pressuring the opponent into mistakes on offense and converting opportunities into points on the other end.
“We talked about setting the tone in the first couple of minutes, especially on the defensive end, and it’s an awfully big bonus to have it come on the offensive end as well,” Silva said. “I mean, we got some quick buckets.”
The start had extra meaning following Philomath’s poor start on Tuesday in a tuneup game at Corvallis.
“When we played earlier in the week against CHS, we kind of had a rough start so we really wanted to focus on our start and make sure it was strong,” Brown said. “All of us were really excited to be here and come out and play. We just wanted to get to that state tournament really bad.”
By the end of the first quarter, Philomath had a 21-5 lead.
“We played complementary basketball that we knew we’ve been able to play all season but have only seen it in spurts,” Silva said. “I think today, we showed it for a full game. “
The offensive pace slowed down in the second quarter but Philomath continued to execute well on defense and allowed just two points for a 31-7 lead at the break. Sophomore Bethany Cannon provided a highlight for the Warriors with a pair of 3-pointers.
Even though two quarters remained and Molalla had its home-court presence with fans continuing to root hard for their team, the game was pretty much over.
“In the locker room, we all came together and recognized that we still had to come out and play with just enough energy as if it’s a close game,” Hood said about the team’s thinking heading into the second half.
“Silva was like reminding us in the locker room that you have to come out and play like you did in the first half,” Brown said.
Philomath led by as many as 32 points in the third quarter on a basket by junior Reagan Heiken. Hood hit her third and fourth 3-pointers about 90 seconds apart. In the fourth quarter, the lead got up to 34 points after Heiken stole the ball underneath Molalla’s hoop and easily scored, followed a short time later by a hoop from senior Shaylee May.
“We played four quarters of being able to score on the hoop and then also knocking down shots from the outside, which makes us a very tough team to face,” Silva said.
Hood complimented her 18 points, 58.3% shooting and four 3-pointers with four steals and two blocked shots. Heiken finished with a dozen points and Brown added 11. Sophomore Reagan Nuño contributed five assists and Heiken and May each grabbed six rebounds.
Senior Yasmin Montiel led Molalla (14-10) with nine points.
As for Philomath’s tournament streak remaining intact, a few interesting footnotes come to mind with the Warriors. Silva’s first season as head coach was 2018-19 — his teams have never not qualified for the tournament. Even in 2020 when the pandemic wiped it out, Philomath had won its first-round playoff game over Phoenix to advance. The next year, although there was no official OSAA tournament, the Warriors advanced to the championship game of what was called the “culminating event.”
One more tidbit — Philomath has brought home a trophy from every tournament played, including the state title in 2022. And even though it was canceled in 2020, the Warriors were No. 1 and heavy favorites to win the title that season.
This week’s 4A girls tournament at Forest Grove High School opens Thursday with the Philomath-Stayton matchup at 1:30 p.m. The No. 1 Eagles advanced to the tournament with a 73-16 win over Klamath Union.
If the Warriors win, they will play either Henley or Marist Catholic in the semifinals at 6:30 p.m. Friday. If Stayton wins, Philomath would go to the consolation semis at 9 a.m. Friday. The championship game is scheduled for 8:45 p.m. Saturday.
Philomath 55, Molalla 24
Saturday, March 7, at Capusso Court, Molalla HS
PHILOMATH (55)
Reagan Nuño 1 0-0 3, Annaleise Brown 4 3-4 11, Shaylee May 1 0-0 2, Jordyn Hood 7 0-2 18, Reagan Heiken 4 4-4 12, Bethany Cannon 2 0-0 6, Libby Kramer 1 0-0 3, Isabelle Muir 0 0-0 0, Khali Toombs 0 0-0 0, Parker Maxey 0 0-0 0, Abby Harwood 0 0-0 0, Sienna Bushnell 0 0-0 0. Totals 20 7-10 55.
MOLALLA (24)
Yasmin Montiel 4 1-1 9, Evelynn Stephens 2 0-0 4, Emma Reiman 2 1-1 5, Payton Greer 1 0-0 2, Gracie Fisher 1 0-0 2, Emma Hugo 0 1-4 1, Ava Dunn 1 0-0 2, Madison Shultz 0 1-2 1. Totals 10 4-8 24.
Team 1 2 3 4 F Philomath (15-10) 21 10 17 7 55 Molalla (14-10) 5 2 12 5 24
3-Point Goals—Philomath 8 (Hood 4, Cannon 2, Kramer, Nuño), Molalla 0. Fouled Out—None. Total Fouls—Philomath 15, Molalla 12. Technicals—Molalla (bench).