It was a great opening day for Henley basketball as both the girls and boys teams won their first games at the Yreka Invitational. Here’s how both matchups unfolded.
Girls: Henley 69, Cascade Christian 48
Henley kept Cascade Christian at arm’s length for most of the game, leading 19-8 after the first quarter and 33-25 at halftime. The Challengers pulled to within 50-46 early in the fourth quarter, but the Hornets responded with a 17-0 run over the next 4:53 to punch their ticket to the semifinals.
“I was proud of our girls for stepping up in the second half when we were in foul trouble,” Henley head coach Randy Denson said.
The Hornets put intense pressure on the Challengers defensively, recording 11 steals. Annie Campos approached a triple-double with 16 points, 11 assists and 7 rebounds (she also had 3 steals) while Anna Harper narrowly missed a double-double with 25 points and 9 rebounds. Other contributors for Henley were Jewell Northcutt with 10 points and 5 rebounds; Senia Campos with 9 points and 3 rebounds; Lily Fussell with 4 points; Kennedi Modin with 3 points and 2 assists; and Prestyn Schade with 2 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals.
For Cascade Christian, Isabel McCauley had 19 points, Jordynn Jones had 14, Grace McCauley had 6, Timnah Roberson had 4, Emma Coats and Taylor Folin each had 2 and Mae Ferreira had 1.
Henley will face Del Norte (CA) in the Yreka Invitational semifinals at 3:30 p.m. Friday.
Boys: Henley 63, Etna (CA) 27
Facing a clearly overmatched Etna (CA) team that only dressed seven players gave Henley a great opportunity to make up for lost practice time; with many of their players contributing to the football team’s state championship run, the Hornets were only able to get a few practices in as a full squad before their first game.
The Lions especially struggled with Henley’s length and athleticism on the defensive end, scoring a single point in the second quarter en route to a 30-5 halftime deficit. The final few minutes were played with a running clock after Henley extended its lead to 40 points, triggering the mercy rule.
“We moved the ball pretty well, didn’t make a bunch of shots but I like the tempo we played,” Henley head coach Luke Hammond said.
In total, the Hornets forced 17 turnovers, including four shot clock violations. Owen Harper had a double-double with 14 points, 10 rebounds and 4 assists and Markus McCreadie had 16 points, 4 rebounds and 2 blocks. Other contributors for Henley were Lane Frank with 9 points and 2 rebounds; Aiden Hayes with 7 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists; Luke Bennett with 7 points, 4 rebounds and 3 steals; TJ Chavez with 5 points and 2 rebounds; Bryson Montag with 4 points, 4 rebounds and 3 steals; Chris Janney with 2 points, 6 assists, 3 rebounds and 2 steals; and Peyton Lichner with 2 points. Every player who dressed out for the Hornets scored.
For Etna (CA), Nate Downey had 8 points, Clayton Harris had 7, Noah Hubbard had 6, Ethan Schickle had 4 and Josh Dresser had 2.
Henley will face Red Bluff (CA) in their second round-robin game at 2 p.m. Friday.
