Basketball squads finish at 1-2 in Yreka

DN boys team wins by 25 in Saturday contest

The Del Norte High boys and girls varsity basketball teams finished the first tournament of the year this past weekend.

Both squads finished with 1-2 records at the event in Yreka. The boys lost their first two contest but handily won their third time out. The girls won in overtime in their first contest but dropped the next two games.

The Warrior boys varsity basketball team bounced back from an ugly loss with a dominating victory Saturday.

In the seventh place game the Warriors dismantled the host team, the Yreka Miners, 52-27 after falling 60-37 to Anderson the day before.

“We looked like a different team,” head coach Blaine Lopez said. “We played with so much more energy. I liked their intensity level.”

Win or lose, Lopez said he wants the Warriors to play as they did Saturday at all times, giving a full effort and taking care of the little things, like diving for loose balls.

“It’s the type of effort we’re going to have to have this season,” Lopez said.

Del Norte came out focused from the start and took a quick 18-9 lead after the first quarter.

The Warriors were able to dominate on both sides of the ball, allowing the Miners only five points in the second quarter as Del Norte took a 30-14 lead into the half.

In the second half the Warriors continued to play well, taking a 43-19 advantage as they cruised to the 25-point win.

Senior Darien Simpson and sophomore Aaron Fitch had 11 points apiece for Del Norte.

Jesus Herrera finished with eight points, and Colby Japp had seven points.

Doug Ovick and Matthew Garza each had four points. Matt Joy finished with three points, and Ryland Hollins and Blair Westbrook each had two points.

The win improved Del Norte to 1-2 for the year. The Warriors began the season Thursday in Yreka by narrowly falling to Klamath Union of Oregon, 38-37.

Del Norte next plays in a tournament in Brookings starting Friday. The Warriors face Phoenix starting at 4 p.m. at Brookings-Harbor High.

Warrior girls

The Del Norte varsity girls opened the tournament with a 40-36 overtime win against Mount Shasta but lost their next two games.

Late Friday night Del Norte could not get by host team Yreka, falling 42-31.

A key injury for Del Norte occurred when the leading scorer from last year, Brittany Maready, suffered a knee injury in the first quarter. She continued to play but had to leave the game by the time the half arrived.

Head coach Buzz McCulloch said that she did not play on Saturday and hopes the injury is not too serious.

Against Klamath Union on Saturday the Warriors fell 44-41.

McCulloch said that while they played solidly overall, including solid defense, 28 turnovers committed by the Warriors “killed us.”

“We had good effort and played well,” he said. “We just can’t make that many turnovers.”

Emma Card had a strong performance in both games, scoring 20 points on Saturday and 14 points on Friday. Taylor Cleland scored 10 points for Del Norte on Saturday. Pahnia Yang scored eight points Friday night and seven points on Saturday.

Del Norte next play on Friday at a tournament in Brookings. They face Myrtle Point at 2 p.m.