By Tyler Hergert
On Tuesday there were two 1B/2B games that took place between four schools with hopes of making their respective state tournaments. The Oakville Acorns (7-2) traveled to Adna (7-1) to take on the Pirates in an afternoon battle while the Willapa Valley Vikings (5-0) headed to Napavine (4-2) to take on the Tigers in the evening, where a historic performance took place.
In Adna, both teams struggled out of the gate but after a few baskets by both teams, they started to heat up as the 1st quarter went on. Courtney Price helped lead the way for the Acorns with two early buckets and after an Aston Boyd three and an Eddie Klatush lay-up, the Acorns had a 9-6 lead over the Pirates. Braden Salme scored the final nine points for Adna as they took a 13-11 lead after the first period. In the second quarter, Adna erupted for 22 points and took advantage of grabbing offensive rebounds and forcing Oakville turnovers. The Pirates had a 35-22 halftime lead and kept up their stellar play in the third quarter as they had 21 points while holding the Acorns to just eight points to take a commanding 56-30 lead heading into the fourth. Oakville had a solid fourth quarter, scoring 14 points which was the most points they scored in a quarter all game but it wasn’t enough as Adna outscored them in all four quarters, scoring 15 in the final stanza.
Adna ended up winning 71-44 in a very great game for the Pirates both offensively and defensively. They will be a formidable opponent in the stacked C2BL while the Acorns will surely bounce back from a tough shooting day to be a tough opponent in 1B, with hopes of making it to the state tournament this year after missing it by just one game last season. Adna (8-1) plays Ilwaco tomorrow and Willapa Valley on Friday in the Jack Q. Pearson Holiday Classic while Oakville (7-3) will return to action in 2023 when they play Lake Quinault next Tuesday.
Napavine was excited to play their second home game of the season and they showed that on both ends of the floor. It isn’t unusual to see Napavine’s football team with a 28-0 first-quarter lead but their basketball team doing the same didn’t seem conceivable until last night when the Tigers did just that. The Tigers press flustered Willapa Valley forcing six turnovers and a multitude of scoring opportunities. The Vikings fought hard in the second by putting up 20 points themselves but the story of the night would be James Grose for Napavine. Grose was hotter than a fox in a forest fire, scoring 31 points in the first half, and was looking at breaking the Napavine single-game scoring record of 42 points, a mark he’s tied once this season. With the help of 10 threes, Grose ended up setting the record with a spectacular 45 points as Napavine would cruise to an 81-50 victory.
Despite being shutout in the first quarter, Garrett Keeton for Willapa Valley had 22 points while Wil Clements chipped in 11 points as well. The Vikings scored as many points in the second half as Napavine did (30) but Grose’s historic night and a slow start were the main factors in Willapa Valley collecting their first loss of the season. Unfortunately for Willapa Valley (5-1), their next game is tomorrow against #2 Morton/White-Pass, who many consider the Timberwolves as one of the favorites for the 2B state championship.
Napavine (5-2) plays Castle Rock today before ending the calendar year by playing Rochester at home on Friday. All eyes will be on James Grose and if he can deliver an encore performance following his record-setting night. Grose started the month by winning a 2B state football championship and is ending the month by holding the most points scored in a boys basketball game in his school’s history. Not a bad month for the junior who is quickly turning into a Napavine legend. He can really cement his status in Napavine history if he can help the Tigers their first state championship in boys basketball this upcoming March.
*Due to internet issues, we were unable to stream Willapa Valley vs. Napavine. That game is not available for on-demand access on the NFHS Network. We apologize for the inconvenience. Oakville vs Adna is on the NFHS Network for on-demand access.*
You can watch the entire game on the NFHS Network on-demand. Subscriptions are $11.99 per month and gives you access to the entire NFHS Network all across the country to watch the live broadcasts or any on-demand games. Go to https://www.nfhsnetwork.com/affiliates/eli-sports-network to sign-up if you don’t have a subscription or to find the on-demand replay of this game.