Only a handful of league games have been played in the Oregon West so far this season but only one team remained unbeaten through Friday night’s results — Philomath. The Warriors built an eight-point lead in the first half and then poured on the heat in the third quarter en route to a 50-29 victory at Woodburn.
“We played well in the second half,” PHS coach Ben Silva said, “especially in the third quarter. We did a better job of not forcing so much and taking what the ‘D’ gave us.”
The victory puts Philomath’s season records at 3-0 in the conference and 9-2 overall. The Warriors are unbeaten against Class 4A opponents with those two setbacks coming against exceptional 5A teams.
For Woodburn, it was the team’s first league loss.
Philomath’s height advantage factored into the outcome with senior Sage Kramer and junior Abigail Brown scoring 37 of the team’s 50 points. Kramer and Brown were the only two players to score in the first quarter for Philomath with six points apiece. In the second quarter, junior Mia Bennett and sophomore Ahnika Tryon came off the bench and joined Kramer in the scoring column.
By halftime, Philomath’s lead was 25-17 — encouraging but far from putting the game away with the Bulldogs trailing by single digits.
However, the Warriors came up big in the third quarter to pull away for good. Kramer and Brown again teamed up to light up the scoreboard and Philomath built a 43-24 lead going into the fourth quarter.
The Warrior defense allowed just 12 points in the second half.
Kramer finished with 23 points on seven field goals and 5 of 8 on free throws. Kramer hit a pair of 3-pointers in the first half and had 10 points alone in a hot-handed third quarter. Brown, meanwhile, hit for 14 points on six field goals and 2 of 5 on foul shots.
Senior guard Aria Kent scored nine points and sophomore guard Alyana Ramirez had seven to lead the Bulldogs (9-3 overall, 2-1 Oregon West).
Philomath will now take a week off from competition and return to the road on Jan. 21 for a trip over to Sisters.
Philomath 50, Woodburn 29
Friday, Jan. 14, at Woodburn HS
TEAMS (RECORDS) 1 2 3 4 FINAL Philomath (9-2, 3-0) 12 13 18 7 50 Woodburn (9-3, 2-1) 6 11 7 5 29 PHILOMATH FG FT-FTA PF TP 13 Ingrid Hellesto# 0 0-0 3 0 15 Sage Kramer# 8 5-8 3 23 32 Abigail Brown# 6 2-5 2 14 33 Hailie Couture# 0 0-0 0 0 45 Reagan Larson# 1 0-0 3 2 1 K Bacho 0 0-0 1 0 3 Mia Bennett 2 0-0 0 5 23 Cassidy Lewis 1 0-0 0 2 10 Ahnika Tryon 2 0-0 0 4 12 Clara Stanley 0 0-0 0 0 TOTALS 20 7-13 12 50 # Starter WOODBURN FG FT-FTA PF TP 0 Aria Kent# 3 0-0 1 9 2 Nayeli Zepeda# 1 0-0 2 2 12 Alyana Ramirez# 1 5-8 4 7 14 Daiana Rodriguez# 1 0-0 2 2 20 Briana Cruz# 0 0-0 0 0 3 Mia Te 0 0-0 0 0 4 Lilli Pankey 0 0-0 0 0 10 Daira Rodriguez 0 0-0 3 0 24 Mya Salinas 1 0-0 1 3 22 Kiarah Bryant 3 0-0 0 6 13 Liliana Bellman 0 0-0 0 0 TOTALS 10 5-8 13 29 # Starter 3-Point Goals: Philomath 3 (Kramer 2, Bennett), Woodburn 4 (Kent 3, Salinas)
Fouled Out: None
Total Fouls: Philomath 12, Woodburn 13
Technicals: None
JUNIOR VARSITY
Philomath 50, Woodburn 32
Friday, Jan. 14, at Woodburn HS
TEAMS 1 2 3 4 FINAL Philomath 13 11 11 15 50 Woodburn 9 6 8 9 32 JV GAME NOTES Philomath’s JV team record goes to 5-3 on the season. … Sophomore Ahnika Tryon scored 17 points on six field goals and 5 of 7 free throws to lead PHS scorers. … Freshman Anneka Steen and freshman Mica Boynton each scored eight points. … Boynton’s eight points included 6 for 7 accuracy at the free throw line. … The JV team is scheduled to play next on Jan. 21 at Woodburn.
JUNIOR VARSITY 2
Philomath 40, Woodburn 20
Friday, Jan. 14, at Woodburn HS
TEAMS 1 2 3 4 FINAL Philomath 14 11 5 10 40 Woodburn 2 5 7 6 20 JV2 GAME NOTES The JV2 team remains unbeaten with a 6-0 record. … The Warriors jumped out to a 14-2 lead in the first quarter with freshman Hannah Bennett scoring eight of her 12 points. … By halftime, Philomath led 25-7. … Bennett’s 12 points included a pair of 3-pointers. … Freshman Ariana Boutilier scored eight points, six of those in the second quarter. … The JV2 team is scheduled to play next on Jan. 25 at home against Stayton.