COOS BAY – One day after needing an epic comeback to remain in contention at the 2025 OSAA / OnPoint Community Credit Union Boys 3A State Basketball Championships, the Westside Christian Eagles captured their first-ever boys basketball championship, 65-47, over a Pleasant Hill team that entered the game riding a 19-game winning streak.
“We had the utmost confidence. There was good energy all around. We had no other option but winning..” – Westside senior guard Jack Leland
“That was what we normally are.” – Westside head coach David Henry
The story of Westside Christian’s rise of the top of 3A basketball is quite refreshing. After two years falling short in the championship game with a roster full of AAU basketball players, the Eagles opted for a home-grown approach to 2025. The players they put on the floor didn’t look like much, but they made magic when they played. As Henry said often, the whole of this team was clearly better than the sum of their parts.
They showed that on Friday afternoon when they rallied from down 15 at halftime to Oregon Episcopal School with a perfect second half to defeat the Aardvarks in one 3A semifinal. The Eagles doubled down last night with first-half perfection against a taller, more physical Pleasant Hill team.
“They were dialed in all day and very loose in the locker room,” Henry said. “They stuck to the plan and showed the character that they’ve shown all year.”
The game started slowly for both teams, perhaps due to nerves but perhaps also because the game started close to 9 p.m. Westside Christian ramped up after the first three minutes, scoring five quick points on a triple from Kyler Crites, followed by a Leland steal and layup, and the Eagles were off! The first quarter was played end to end, but Westside played a little more under control than the turnover-plagued Billies and, buoyed by three Crites three-pointers, led 18-11 after one quarter.
“In warm ups I was draining them, so I knew I could hit them,” said Crites. “I was thinking, ‘I’ve got to hit them for my team.’ Go big or go home ya know?”
Westside Christian started the second period quickly, getting a Leland bucket, assisted by Roahn Reid; and a Reid hoop of his own, to get all five starters in the scorebook while building the lead to 11. Riley Smith and Gavin Inglish scored consecutive field goals for Pleasant Hill to make the margin a more comfortable seven, but Crites countered with his fourth three of the half, from the wing off an assist from Cole Chiong; and Leland’s third steal and conventional three-point play, assisted again by Chiong, forced Pleasant Hill’s first-year head coach, Luke Jackson, into a time out with his Billies down, 28-15, with 3:06 remaining before the half.
Jackson called another time out less than a minute later, after Westside junior Josh Huskey entered and gave the Eagles a jolt of energy with a three-point basket and three rebounds; but he could not spark his team. The Billies went into the locker room at halftime down by 16 points and scoreless over the final 5:49 of the half.
Westside Christian had to be pleased with its effort over the first 16 minutes. The Eagles had thoroughly outplayed Pleasant Hill, forcing 13 turnovers (to three of their own), while outshooting the Billies and assisting on 10 of their 12 field goals. They were playing a complete game.
Of course, Westside’s players did not need to be reminded that they came back from a similar halftime deficit one day before. This is no time to be satisfied. Sixteen minutes of effort stood between them and the state championship!
Westside kept the pedal to the ground and scored the first five out of the break, on a nifty reverse layup from Leland and a Jona Lee bucket from beyond the arc that was the result of not one but two extra passes.
Pleasant Hill showed signs of life thereafter. Inglish’s three-pointer from the top of the key snapped an almost-eight-minute scoring drought and the Billies were able to slow Westside’s offense with a 2-1-2 zone defense that made it difficult for the Eagles to penetrate and dish.
With Jacob Neeley creating. Smith and Kaden Fisher using their size to score down low, and success at the free throw line, Pleasant Hill made it a game, pulling within nine on a free throw by Landen Melvin with 11 seconds remaining, before a Chiong free throw and his back door layup, assisted by Leland, in the closing seconds of the quarter, extended Westside Christian’s advantage to 12 heading to the fourth.
Pleasant Hill switched back to man-to-man defense to start the final period but it was not effective. Chiong used his speed to penetrate for a layup, then caught the defense flat-footed with a wing three that made the Eagle lead 15 less than one minute in. The Billies twice had shots from long range to bring the game back to single digits, but could not convert. Meanwhile, Westside was capitalizing on 50-50 plays, like when Crites collected a loose ball and found Reid for a hoop and harm as the shot clock was about to expire.
Inglish, a senior who so desperately wanted to bring a title, 26 years removed from the last one, to his public school and community, fought to keep Pleasant Hill in the game, but time was not on its side. Westside was deliberate, valued possession and took advantage when opportunities presented themselves. The Eagles’ 12-point lead at the four-minute mark to 20 two minutes later. Two late three pointers by Melvin and Noah Johnson cut the margin to 16 before both teams cleared their benches and the Westside celebration commenced.
Inglish finished with 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting to lead Pleasant Hill (26-3). Melvin added 10 and six assists. The Billies shot well from the field, but took 13 attempted 13 fewer field goals because of a 19-8 turnover disadvantage.
“We dug ourselves in a hole early,” Inglish said. “We weren’t able to string enough good possessions or enough stops to get out of it.”
“The moment was big,” Jackson said. “Give Westside credit. They executed and we didn’t. It was just a bad time to lose our composure. I’m proud of the kids. We had a magical season. It’s disappointing, because we’re so much better than we played tonight.”
Inglish stressed that the loss would not mar what had been a great year for the Billiles.
“It was the first time in the finals in 26 years,” he said. “There’s a lot to celebrate, even though we didn’t accomplish our final goal.”
Leland led the way for smaller Westside (24-3) with 18 points, five assists, five rebounds and five steals. Chiong collected 16 points and six assists. Crites had 14 points, two assists and four rebounds. Reid finished with eight points and two assists. Lee had six points, three assists and two steals.
Total. Team. Effort.
“We knew we were going to get this done,” Leland said. “Every team we play is bigger than us. We’re not new to this but we know how to defend it and did a great job tonight.”
“It's very satisfying,” Henry said. “We don’t’ look the same as we have the last couple of years but this is the truest team anyone can imagine.”
“This means everything,” Leland concluded. “I’ve been in this program for so long and we’ve been second so often. To finally get it done as a leader means the world to me.”
The title is a fitting swan song for Henry, whose family is relocating to Arizona next week. He will join them once the school year is complete.
In the boys’ 3rd/5th game:
Valley Catholic 75, Oregon Episcopal School 60
Valley Catholic led virtually start to finish and used a full team effort to defeat league rival Oregon Episcopal School for the fourth time this season and capture third place in OSAA 3A for the second consecutive year.
“Full team” is not a misnomer. Valiant head coach Jeb Ivey played all 12 of his available players, and during critical junctures of the game. Nine scored. Eight assisted. Eleven recorded rebounds. All made an impact, both on the floor and in the scorebook.
“Overall, a huge team effort,” Ivey remarked. “Can’t say enough.”
With its regular all-senior starting lineup in the game, Valley Catholic played OES to a virtual standstill in the first quarter. The Valiants got six points from Dylan Trobetsky and a stick back late to grab a 15-14 lead after one. Ryder Sendecke scored five in the first off the bench for the Aardvarks.
Valley Catholic sent out its second unit to start the second and they were the spark the Valiants needed after suffering a difficult loss to Pleasant Hill in a semifinal on Friday evening. Eight points from sophomore forward Garrett Frank, including two acrobatic lay ins, extended Valley Catholic’s lead to 25-18 midway through the quarter. Michael Mehta also sparked the Valiants, who extended their lead to 34-22 at the break.
“Giving the second team an opportunity is an appreciation for our seniors but at the same time a looking forward to next year,” Ivey explained. “I’m an all-inclusive coach and also a senior-loyal coach. It was important to give the seniors their due and also prepare at the same time for next year and give the second team a little glimpse and some experience.”
With the starters rested and back on the court to start the second half, Valley Catholic continued to build its lead and was up by 18, 54-36, before a late OES flurry cut four off the margin after three periods.
Oregon Episcopal School, which suffered its own heartbreaking loss in yesterday’s semifinals, did not lose its fight into the fourth quarter. Junior point guard Max Holzman hit a triple off the bat and followed shortly thereafter with a conventional three-point play. Just over one minute into the fourth, the Varks had shaved Valley Catholic’s lead to just 10. When Kais Elabdeia hit a win three to get OES within 60-52 midway through, Valley Catholic sent its seniors back in.
Oregon Episcopal had momentum and was determined, however, and its full-court pressure surprised Valley Catholic into a couple of turnovers that the Varks converted into easy points. Suddenly, the lead was just six with plenty of time remaining for coming all the way back.
OES had two chances to cut the lead by two more points, but two determined attacks of the goal would not go down. On the other end, Luke Jarussi scored at the rim, Zach Pippin and Trobetsky knocked down two freebies each and the game was effectively over.
Holzman finished with 16 and Elabdeia 14 for OES (19-9). The Aardvarks played a strong game, turned the ball over just six times but were betrayed by their shooting, making just just 35 percent of their attempts from the field.
Six Valley Catholic players reached double digit point totals, led by Frank’s 14. Jackson Farris overpowered OES to score a dozen with 10 rebounds. Trobetsky had 11. Pippin, Jarussi and Mehta scored 10 each. The Valiants (21-8) shot 50 percent from the field and 72 percent from the line.
“I’m proud of all of them,” Ivey said. “Obviously our big goal of holding up No. 1 was not reached. It was an emotional night last night and it was emotional this morning. It was about reminding them of the work they’ve been doing and how it needs to carry over for the rest of life. That’s the bigger picture here. The true trophy is years down the road; it’s not about right now.”
In the boys 4th/6th game:
Cascade Christian 43, De La Salle North Catholic 40
The Challengers outlasted the Knights in a consolation final matching tournament regulars.
Jaren Fronckowiak hit a tiebreaking free throw with 38 seconds to go and Deryk Farmer added a steal in the final 20 seconds and two free throws with eight seconds to go as Cascade Christian finished the weekend on a positive note after starting it with hopes of a fourth straight state championship.
Valley Catholic ended those dreams Thursday night in the quarterfinals, but Cacade Christian bounced back with a win over Creswell in the consolation semifinals and Saturday’s win over the Knights.
“I’m super proud of the guys, from what they did this whole season and to lose a tough, emotional game to Valley Catholic,” Cascade Christian coach Brian Morse said.
De La Salle had bounced back from its own Thursday loss to rival Oregon Episcopal with a win over Banks on Friday morning.
Like Cascade Christian, the Knights had a lot of new faces on the roster, but found a way not just to get back to the state tournament, but also get a trophy.
“It’s always a goal to make it to the last day,” De La Salle coach James Broadous II said. “We made it to the last day and played a great program. Sometimes it doesn’t go your way.”
Neither team came out strong Saturday. The Knights led just 5-2 through eight minutes against a Challenger team that was just 1-for-14 from the field. The teams warmed up the next two quarters and the game was tied at 30-all heading to the fourth after Cascade Christian’s Brady Kleker hit a corner 3-pointer just before the buzzer.
The Challengers went up by four and three in the fourth quarter, but each time Valley Catholic countered, the last time on a layin by Jacory Jackson with 1:07 to go.
Fronckowiak broke the tie when he was fouled on a jumper and made one of the free throws and Farmer’s steal and free throws provided the final margin.
The win was secured when De La Salle’s Josh Hickox was off the mark on a 3-pointer at the buzzer.
Fronckowiak had a game-high 19 points for the Challengers, including a couple of big fourth-quarter 3-pointers.
“With the game on the line, you put the ball in your best player’s hands,” Morse said. “Jaren made some big shots for us to put us up when it mattered.”
Farmer added nine points and eight rebounds for Cascade Christian, which has won a state tournament trophy for six straight years.
Hickox led the Knights with 11 points. Jaylen Hill and Dontae Stidum scored nine each and combined for 23 rebounds.
***
All-Tournament Second Team
Jackson Farris, Valley Catholic
Roahn Reid, Westside Christian
Max Holzman, Oregon Episcopal School
Jack Leland, Westside Christian
Zach Pippin, Valley Catholic
All-Tournament First Team
Gavin Inglish, Pleasant Hill
Cole Chiong, Westside Christian
Jaylen Hill, De La Salle North Catholic
Jaren Fronckowiak, Cascade Christian
Joe Schwalbach, Oregon Episcopal School
Sportsmanship Trophy
Cascade Christian
John Gunther contributed to this report.
johnt@osaa.org
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