This story was updated at 7:30 a.m. Sunday with information on Philomath's opponent in the championship game.
The Philomath High’s girls basketball team sailed into the championship game of the Clarke Cochrane Christmas Classic with a 46-17 rout Saturday over Lathrop, a school out of Fairbanks, Alaska.
The Warriors will face Crook County in the championship game at 7 p.m. local time on Sunday (8 p.m. Pacific time). Crook County (5-5) defeated Ketchikan, 48-43, to set up the all-Oregon finale.
Philomath, the No. 1-ranked team in Class 4A and now has an 8-1 record, flexed its muscle early with a 14-4 run to open the game. By halftime, the Warriors were leading 23-9 and the second half was much of the same.
Philomath’s defense limited Lathrop to single digits in each of the four quarters, including just two in the fourth.
Senior Zoee Howard led PHS scorers with 12 points on four field goals and 3 of 4 on free throws. Howard had the team’s lone 3-pointer on a shot in the first quarter. Sophomore Reagan Heiken added 11 points with most of those coming at the foul line. She made two field goals along with a 7-of-12 performance on free throws.
Sophomore Aliyah Briggman led the Malemutes (1-2) with five points.
Philomath opened the tournament Friday with a victory by the same exact score, defeating Haines (Alaska), 46-17.
After Philomath wraps up the tournament, the Warriors will fly home and get a little bit of a break from competition until Jan. 7 when the team is scheduled to host Crater.
