Clatskanie Tigers get back to winning ways at home

Following their first defeat in seven games at the hands of Nestucca on Monday, Jan. 13, the Clatskanie girls basketball team got right back to work, defeating Aloha's Faith Bible Christian 42-14 at home Wednesday, Jan. 15. Taking a 12-2 lead into the second quarter and a 16-7 lead at halftime, the girls were able to pull away in the third quarter en route to the blowout victory. The girls were led in scoring by junior Joey Sizemore, who had a well-rounded night statistically, scoring 15 points, grabbing nine rebounds, dishing seven assists, managing seven steals, and blocking three shots. Sophomore Lacey Willis had the second most points for the Tigers with 13 to go along with her six rebounds and two steals. Sophomore Olivia George pulled down the most rebounds of the night with 14 to go along with her 10 points, making her the only Tiger with a double-double Wednesday. Senior Karielle Carlson and sophomore Payton Taylor had two points each in the winning effort.

The girls hit the road last Friday, Jan. 17, where they beat the Gaston Greyhounds 40-30. Finding themselves in a 21-16 hole going into halftime, Clatskanie outscored Gaston 24-9 in the second half, including 11-2 in the third quarter, to take a lead with which they would pull away in the fourth. The offense ended up bailing out a defense which, according to Coach Dawn Warren, had three starters playing through the third quarter with foul trouble.

"They did a great job of coming out in the second half and continuing to play hard, but also being cognizant of adjustments that needed to be made to keep from getting more fouls," said Warren. "Their teammates did a fantastic job of stepping up and playing great help defense to help support this. We also had several players coming off the bench and stepping up to help bring home the win."

Willis led all scorers with 19 points on 5 for 15 shooting from the field. Willis went a remarkable 9 for 12 from the free-throw line. Sizemore got the game's only double double, scoring 11 points and grabbing 17 rebounds for the Tigers. Along with her rebounds, Sizemore had a team high in assists with five, steals with five, and blocks with four. George managed six points, two assists, a steal and a block, and junior Bethany Hagen managed four points to complete the scoring for Clatskanie.

"A road win is always a great win," said Coach Dawn Warren. "This was a long week for the girls, traveling to Nestucca on Monday, playing at home on Wednesday and then traveling again to Gaston on Friday night. The girls started off strong in the first quarter but then lost some momentum in the second quarter. Some adjustments were made at halftime, and the girls came out and executed, chipping away a little at a time and working hard on both ends of the court to secure the win."