Vale Boys Win, Hilanders’ Showdown Looming

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John L. Braese

NYSSA – As the Vale and Nyssa boys’ basketball teams took the court on Tuesday, Feb. 7, each had a need for a win. The host Bulldogs were coming off an upset loss to McLoughlin while the Vikings needed to keep pace with the undefeated Burns Hilanders leading the Eastern Oregon League.

As the buzzer sounded, it was Vale taking a convincing 77-57 victory and making plans for a home game against Burns. For Nyssa, the loss keeps the Dawgs in third place in the league standings.

The Vikings led from the first quarter, 16-10 and with Vale outscoring Nyssa 20-9 in the second quarter, this game saw a 36-19 halftime score.

Nine separate Vale players put points on the board led by Colton Stepleton’s 20 points. Luke McGourty added 14 points and Diesel Johnson put in 12 points.

For the Bulldogs, Orin Stipe finished with 16 points followed by Zach Kausler’s 15 points.

This season sees a large difference in the boys’ Eastern Oregon League standings. The top three teams, Burns, Vale and Nyssa post a combined league record of 21-5 while the next three, McLoughlin, Umatilla and Riverside hold a combined record of 5-21.

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