Outlaws stung by Hornets in first round of state playoffs

The Outlaws' season came to an end with a 45-34 loss to the Henley Hornets at Henley on Saturday, March 5.

Sisters stepped into the Hornets nest surrounded by a loud and aggressive Henley crowd. The Outlaws did well defensively in the first quarter, and held the Hornets to nine points, but struggled on offense and forced too many of their own shots trying to play at Henley's tempo.

Keegan Greaney got into foul trouble, and had to sit out for awhile, which hurt the Outlaws even more.

Sisters survived the first quarter, but the wheels fell off in the second period. In the midst of a raucous crowd, the first half was a total frenzy, and the Outlaws were unable to set the game to their tempo. The Outlaws did continue to hold own defensively to close out the half, but they were haunted by 11 turnovers against the Hornets' three-fourth court trap.

"In the second quarter, we continued to dribble into traps and struggled with their pressure," said Coach Rand Runco. "They sometimes had three guys trapping the ball, but we could not find the open man. We also gave up several offensive boards. We knew we had to weather their emotional storm, which is who they are."

Sisters was down by 20, with the score at 27-7 as teams headed to the locker rooms.

The second half proved to be a totally different story, and the Outlaws were able to settle down and play their game.

Jake Larson, an excellent defensive player, came into the game, settled down the squad, and shut down one of the Hornets' scorers. Hayes Moore played solid throughout, and Greaney played tremendous defense on Henley's best player, one of the top point guards in the state.

Sisters' defense worked together, and the Outlaws started to get stops that led to buckets. Scott Waddell was on fire and put in 13 of his 17 points in the second half, and went five-for-six from the field.

The Outlaws scratched their way back from a 20-point halftime deficit, and pulled to within five midway through the final period. Sisters had two chances to pull to within three, but gave up a few baskets and found themselves down by nine, and time ran out on the clock.

"We expended too much energy coming back, but did not have quite enough to get over the hump," said Runco. "We had to foul, and they hit their free throws."

Waddell led the Outlaws with 17 points, Greaney scored eight points, and pulled down seven boards. Tyler Head, Waddell, Jonathon Bertagna, and Connor Lake did a great job of containing Henley's two great posts.

"Everyone stepped up," said Runco. "We lost Steen Johnson to an elbow injury last week, and Connor Lake had an ankle injury that limited him, but this team was so resilient this season. In the last few weeks junior Ben Saba, Jonathon Bertagna, and freshmen Jack Berg stepped up and played key roles as we made our play-off run. Coming off the bench at the end of the game, junior Sam Barbrecht, and freshman Korbin Sharp and Zach Anderson, who have been giving their all as practice players, were able to get on the court.

"We are really proud of the boys' effort and character," concluded Runco. "It was a tough loss, but the boys really battled hard and almost came back."

The Outlaws finished the season with a 15-6 overall record.