The Henley girls and the Mazama boys played their final games at the OSAA 4A basketball state championships at Forest Grove High School Saturday, with the Hornets competing in the fourth-place game and the Vikings competing in the third-place game. Here’s how things unfolded.
No. 3 Henley 63, No. 4 La Grande 48
Henley (25-3) went on a 20-0 run in a span of just under three and a half minutes late in the first quarter, and La Grande (20-6) didn’t get closer than 15 points again until the Hornets emptied their bench late in the fourth.
Henley led 26-8 after the first quarter, 41-23 at halftime and 52-30 after the third quarter.
“I was really happy today,” Hornets head coach Randy Denson said. “We looked like the Henley Hornets that we should be…I was super thankful the seniors got a win for the last game.”
It was Henley’s second fourth-place game appearance in three years; the fifth-seeded Hornets lost to 10th-seeded Philomath in 2023. This time, the defending state champions had to overcome the disappointment of a Thursday night quarterfinal loss to No. 11 seed Baker (which went on to win the third-place game) to earn a trophy. An elimination game win over No. 7 seed Seaside Friday morning showed their motivation was still strong.
“I preached to our team that I just want to play Saturday,” Denson said. “I don’t care. I want to play the last day of the season.”
“We were just like ‘well, we don’t want to go home now, we want one more game,’” Henley senior Anna Harper said. “And we didn’t want to end our season on a loss, so we really had to show out today.”
The Hornets’ best offensive output of the tournament coincided with their earliest game time: 9 a.m.
“We were running on pretty little sleep, lots of energy drinks, barely had breakfast this morning,” Harper said. “We were up early and we knew we had to create energy. It wasn’t going to create itself.”
“I think it started last night,” Denson said. “We had a great team dinner. I think the girls realized that it’s [the] end-all be-all this morning…they were ready to play and go win for the seniors.”
Freshman Makayla Schroeder led Henley with 18 points (including 6-of-7 free throws) and 15 rebounds, finishing the season with 20 double-doubles; Harper had 17 points (on 8-of-11 shooting) and 8 rebounds; sophomore Prestyn Schade had 10 points (including two threes), 6 rebounds and 4 assists; junior Lily Fussell had 6 points, 4 steals and 2 rebounds; senior Bayli Ladner had 5 points and 5 rebounds; junior Kennedi Modin had 3 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists; junior Senia Campos had 2 points, 2 rebounds and 2 assists; and freshman Gretchen Cheyne had 2 points.
For the Tigers, junior Rowan Evans had 11 points, 4 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 assists; senior Carlee Strand had 9 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals; junior Peyton Daggett had 8 points (including two threes) and 3 rebounds; junior Taryn Mcilmoil had 7 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists; senior Olivia Pennington had 5 points and 4 rebounds; senior Kayle Collman had 4 points, 5 rebounds and 3 steals; and senior Emree Hutchins had 4 points and 3 rebounds.
Henley shot 25-of-56 (45%) from the field, including 3-of-11 (27%) from 3-point range, and made 10-of-14 free throws (71%). La Grande shot 16-of-62 (26%) from the field, including 5-of-29 (17%) from 3-point range, and made 11-of-20 free throws (55%). The Hornets outrebounded the Tigers 48-35 and had 17 turnovers to La Grande’s 10.
Schroeder was the state tournament’s second-leading scorer and top rebounder, averaging 17.3 points and 13.3 boards across Henley’s three games. She received first team all-tournament honors, becoming the first freshman to earn that distinction since 2019.
This was La Grande’s first 20-win season since the 2015-16 campaign. The Tigers’ seniors–Strand, Pennington, Collman, and Hutchins–depart after leading the program to the OSAA championships for the first time since 2020 (that year’s tournament was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic). They amassed a four-year record of 63-32 and won two Greater Oregon League titles.
Henley’s 25 wins this season tied the program record; the Hornets previously won 25 games in the 1979-80, 2011-12 and 2014-15 seasons. Henley’s two seniors–Harper and Ladner–comprise the winningest class since 1992, with a four-year record of 82-25. They won three Skyline Conference titles and made three state tournament appearances, capturing the program’s fourth state championship in 2023.
“They helped push the boulder up the mountain to be a part of [the state title],” Denson said. “I appreciate their hard work, their leadership, and we’re going to miss them.”
No. 1 Cascade 67, No. 14 Mazama 57
Mazama (15-13) senior Jordan Beals made a layup with 4:24 left in the fourth quarter to give his team a 57-55 lead, but Cascade (23-4) went on a 12-0 run the rest of the game as the Vikings missed their last eight shots.
It was Mazama’s second appearance in the third-place game. The Vikings won it in 2011, recording the highest state tournament finish in program history.
“We played probably one of our best games,” Mazama head coach Ryan Millsap said.
A day after scoring 13 points in the first half of their semifinal game against No. 2 seed Marshfield, the Vikings led 17-8 at the end of the first quarter. Turnovers allowed Cascade to build momentum in the second quarter; the Cougars scored 23 points in the period, with 11 coming off Mazama giveaways. The Vikings fell behind 30-27 with 1:24 to go but were able to tie the game at 31-31 heading into halftime.
Mazama never led in the third quarter and ended the period down 47-43. They were able to stay within striking distance and regained the lead at 51-50 when senior Kai Hunt converted an and-one opportunity with 5:58 left in the game. The score was tied twice before Beals scored what would be the Vikings’ final points.
The game had a total of 10 ties and nine lead changes. In addition to a significant size disadvantage (three of Cascade’s starters were listed at 6-foot-3 or taller), Mazama was faced with a stark disparity in free throws, shooting 13 to Cascade’s 34. The Vikings made 11 of their foul shots (85%), while the Cougars made 25 of theirs (74%).
Mazama shot 21-of-55 (38%) from the field, including 4-of-17 (24%) from 3-point range. Cascade shot 18-of-63 (29%) from the field, including 6-of-22 (27%) from 3-point range. The Cougars outrebounded the Vikings 47-37, including 21-9 on the offensive glass, resulting in an 18-7 advantage in second-chance points.
Beals finished with 16 points to lead Mazama; Hunt had 13 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals; senior Gabe Nanni had 11 points (including three triples) and 4 rebounds; senior Ryan Hayden had 10 points and 10 rebounds; junior Jagger Jackson had 4 points; and senior Dominic Melgoza had 3 points, 11 rebounds and 3 assists.
Cascade senior Kaiden Ford, who owns a Division III offer from Willamette, scored seven straight points to start the Cougars’ game-ending run. He finished with 39 points, 9 rebounds and 5 steals. Senior Landon Knox, who owns Division III offers from Willamette and Pacific, added 19 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals.
“Knox and Ford…they’re just incredible ball players,” Millsap said. “Gabe and Kai guarding them did what they were supposed to do and did that all game.
“And then in the fourth quarter, Ford…kind of led a spark for them, I think, and it was hard for us to just stay in it at that point. Cascade’s real colors started showing.”
Apart from Ford and Knox, freshman Brody Anundi had 4 points, 7 rebounds and 3 blocks; senior Cruz Shank had 2 points, 7 rebounds and 3 blocks; freshman Brysen Higgins had 2 points and 4 rebounds; senior Ethan Medyanik had 1 point and 2 rebounds; and senior Hunter Anundi had 6 rebounds.
The Cougars’ seniors–Ford, Knox, Shank, Medyanik, Hunter Anundi, Cooper Brackett and Carter Condon–graduate with a four-year record of 91-15, the winningest class in program history. They closed their high school careers with back-to-back third-place finishes at the 4A tournament after winning back-to-back state championships in 2022 and 2023.
Mazama’s fifth-place finish capped off a remarkable turnaround–both from last season, when the Vikings finished 4-17, and from the beginning of this season, when they lost six of their first seven games while dealing with multiple injuries. Mazama’s 15 wins were its most since the 2010-11 season, and the Vikings became the lowest seed to advance to the 4A semifinals since Tillamook did so as the No. 15 seed in 2017.
“I don’t know if anybody outside of our program would have ever guessed that we would be here,” Millsap said. “[The players] worked their tails off for what they needed to do to get here…everybody in the state needs to know that they earned what they got this weekend.”
Mazama graduates seven seniors from this year’s team: Beals, Hunt, Nanni, Hayden, Melgoza, Logan Harrington and Drake Peters.
“All seven of those seniors are the face of Mazama basketball right now,” Millsap said. “They’re amazing young men…they’re mature, they’re great people, and they make my job easy.”
