Embattled in another close girls basketball game against Oregon West rival Cascade Tuesday night, Philomath needed answers on offense to try to secure a safe lead over a dangerous opponent.
The team led just 22-20 as the clock ticked under 7 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. The Warriors were hoping for a strong finish.
Gallery: PHS girls basketball vs. Cascade (Feb. 18, 2025)
A collection of photos from Philomath High’s 33-25 girls basketball victory at home over Cascade on Tuesday.
Enter Philomath High’s Reagan Nuño. The 5-foot-7 freshman has seen limited minutes this season on a varsity roster that’s deep when it comes to experience. But the crowd gathered in the PHS gym saw flashes of what Nuño can bring on the court.
Nuño buried a 3-pointer from the corner to give Philomath a 25-20 lead with 6:47 remaining. And then after Cascade answered with a hoop on the other end, Nuño scored again, this time on a layup after being on the receiving end of a pass from sophomore Reagan Heiken. The Cougars never recovered and Philomath went on to a 33-25 victory.
“It’s fun to see kids come in and have some success, especially as a freshman, and to see her teammates love it and support her,” PHS coach Ben Silva said.
Nuño believes the team played at a higher tempo compared to the first time the Warriors played Cascade — a 46-44 loss on the road in late January.
“I think our energy was way higher than the first time we played them,” Nuño said. “We were all in.”
Philomath trailed 11-6 through the first quarter but went on a 9-0 run to take the lead. Senior Anneka Steen hit a couple of free throws, junior Isabelle Muir came up with a midcourt steal and scored on a layup, sophomore Annaleise Brown found the net with an assist to Muir and Steen sank a 3-pointer to give the Warriors a 15-11 lead.
The Warriors lost a bit of momentum, however, when junior Shaylee May came down on an opponent’s foot and appeared to hurt her ankle. She headed to the locker room and didn’t return to the game.
By halftime, Cascade had come back to take a 16-15 lead. The Cougars maintained that margin through the third quarter with the score at 21-20 going into the fourth.
“It was really exciting to come back and even keep it even instead of having a bunch of turnovers,” Nuño said. “I think we were the smarter, more athletic team (in the second half).”
After Nuño’s key baskets early in the fourth, Heiken, Brown and Steen scored points to account for the final score. Cascade scored just nine points in the second half.
“I thought we just grinded, you know, we just came in and we were tough,” Silva said. “It wears teams out — our defensive effort. Eventually we were able to get enough going on the offensive side to take care of business.”
Heiken had a team-high 10 points on four field goals and 2 of 3 on free throws. Steen added nine on two baskets, one of those a 3-pointer, and 4 of 4 from the foul line.
“Annaleise Brown had a couple of big baskets and some rebounds,” Silva said. “Anneka Steen, I thought that was the best game she’s had in a while. And Reagan Heiken got her contribution going as well.”
Philomath needed to battle hard to get points underneath.
“There were some tough finishes, some physical play and the officials were just kind of letting them play,” Silva said. “You’ve got to be strong and finish those shots at the hoop.”
The 25 points scored by Cascade represented that team’s lowest offensive output of the season.
“I mean, it starts on the defensive end,” Silva said. “When you give up 25 points, that’s a pretty tough defensive effort, which was fantastic to see.”
Philomath (18-4 overall, 7-1 Oregon West) wanted to post a victory against a quality opponent after struggling in a 22-point loss Feb. 12 at Amity. The Warriors rolled over North Marion in a Saturday night contest but the Huskies are a lower-division team in the conference.
The Cascade game would be the first opportunity to really build new confidence. Nuño said this about the team message after the loss to Amity: “Work hard in practice. And show up at the next game.”
Teams experiencing such challenging moments often lean on its leaders to work through the process of identifying issues and learning from it.
“Some seniors spoke up,” Silva said. “Like Mica Boynton spoke up in the locker room before the game and basically said something along the lines of ‘we need to go out and do what we’re capable of doing.’ And we did.”
For Cascade (13-6, 4-3), junior Rozalyn Schmunk had a team-high eight points.
Philomath will next play at 7 p.m. Friday on the road against Stayton in a showdown for first place in the Oregon West Conference. The Eagles (21-1, 7-1) will no doubt have it out for the Warriors — Philomath handed the school its only defeat this season, 27-26, on Jan. 31.
