Philomath High’s offense had a few nice moments on the offensive end during Tuesday night’s 49-38 victory over Marist Catholic.
Senior Josiah Peters cashed in on four field goals and hit 3 of 4 free throws to score 11 points. Junior Esias Sapp came off the bench to also score 11, including a 3-pointer in the third quarter that put the Warriors up by 12. Sophomore Cole Barron scored six of his eight points in the second, junior Jamin Peters scored five of his seven in the first and junior Hamish McConnell scored back-to-back baskets 49 seconds apart.
Gallery: PHS boys basketball vs. Marist Catholic (Dec. 9, 2025)
A collection of photos from Philomath High’s 49-38 boys basketball victory over Marist Catholic on Tuesday.
Josiah Peters believes the team came out against Marist with more focus and energy than in last week’s opener vs. Crescent Valley.
“We really brought it in the beginning and that helped us in the long run in the game,” Peters said. “We also got more rebounds than we normally would and that helped us a lot.”
Ah yes, the rebounds. Philomath’s dominance on the glass proved to frustrate the opponent. Three players finished in double figures on the boards — Jamin Peters with 12, Barron with 11 and Josiah Peters with 11.
Philomath’s 13-4 run late in the first and into the second quarter helped the Warriors pull away. Sophomore guard Dreyton Nuño gave PHS a lead that it would never relinquish when he buried a shot for a 9-7 lead. Jamin Peters, McConnell, Sapp and Barron also found the net during the scoring run.
On defense, Philomath also had its moments. Sapp, for example, had consecutive blocked shots about 20 seconds apart late in the first quarter. By halftime, the Warriors held a 29-18 lead.
In the second half, the Spartans cut their deficit to single digits in the opening couple of minutes. Philomath took control, however, with an 11-0 run to end the third quarter and Marist was not able to recover.
Two games into the season, Josiah Peters said the team needs to improve in a few key areas.
“Pressure, that’s a big one, and also ball movement and not just shooting first thing,” he said.
Ecker agreed, saying his team just needs to play smarter.
“Even towards the end of the game, we kept shooting the ball,” he said. “I mean, why shoot the ball? We get an offensive rebound and fire it back up again — just run the clock out.”
Marist Catholic had its most productive offensive output in the fourth quarter, although the outcome had been decided with the Warriors leading 42-23 at the end of the third.
Philomath (1-1) committed 21 turnovers in the contest — a number that’s just too high. Ecker provided a few situational examples of what the team needs to work on to cut down that number.
“We’re trying to throw to a guy that’s not open — don’t throw it to him,” Ecker said. “Maybe we have a play set up that way but it doesn’t matter, it’s not hell or high water getting it to that wing — if it’s not open, don’t throw it to him. So we have to be a little smarter in that way.”
Ecker added that players also need to have better court awareness to avoid excessive fouls.
“We learned some stuff tonight that we need to get better at,” he said. “We could’ve won by a higher margin if we didn’t turn the ball over so much and make some poor choices. But it’s a good step.”
Junior Aarav King and sophomore Gabe Dietmeyer each scored 10 to lead the Spartans (1-1).
Philomath’s next game is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday at home vs. West Albany. The Bulldogs are off to a 2-0 start this season with victories over Roosevelt (72-64) and Thurston (48-45).
Philomath 49, Marist Catholic 38
Tuesday, Dec. 9, at Philomath HS
MARIST CATHOLIC (38)
Brayden Williams 0 0-0 0, CJ Giustina 2 1-7 5, Aarav King 4 1-2 10, Gabe Dietmeyer 4 1-5 10, Fletcher Pollard 3 2-2 8, Colt Mann 0 0-0 0, Colton Boresek 0 0-0 0, Bodey Drennan 1 0-2 2, Jalen Smith 0 0-0 0, Hobs Movalson 0 0-0 0, Rowan Caesar 0 0-0 0, Trace Mann 1 0-0 3, Tripp Murphy 0 0-0 0, Eli Linkhorn 0 0-0 0. Totals 15 5-18 38.
PHILOMATH (49)
Dreyton Nuño 1 0-0 2, Kaden Howard 2 0-1 4, Josiah Peters 4 3-4 11, Cole Barron 3 2-6 8, Jamin Peters 3 1-2 7, Hamish McConnell 3 0-0 6, Esias Sapp 4 2-6 11, Lucas Lewetag 0 0-0 0, Ace Gerding 0 0-0 0. Totals 20 8-19 49.
Team 1 2 3 4 F Marist Catholic (1-1) 9 9 5 15 38 Philomath (1-1) 12 17 13 7 49
3-Point Goals—Marist Catholic 3 (King, Dietmeyer, T. Mann), Philomath 1 (Sapp). Fouled Out—Dietmeyer. Total Fouls—Marist Catholic 19, Philomath 17. Technicals—None.
