Freshmen spark Pirates to big win in C2BL opener

That the Adna boys basketball team shot the lights out in a 78-37 win over Onalaska to open league play Thursday evening at home isn’t exactly a shocker.

But which Pirates in particular were doing the shooter might raise the eyebrows of those who haven’t been paying attention the past week.

Adna, which lost two of its senior captains to major injuries before the first week of the season had concluded, leaned on its freshmen Tuesday, and its trio of ninth-graders delivered in a big way.

“I’m really proud of these guys,” Adna coach Luke Salme said. “We’ve had such bad luck and adversity, and these guys worked so hard this week to stay optimistic, compete their butts off every day and just be there for one another.”

Grayson Humphrey, Trevin Salme and Beau Miller combined to outscore Onalaska by themselves in just their fourth varsity game, totaling 41 points between the three of them.

Humphrey led the way with 17 points, while Salme had 15 and Miller had nine. The three combined to shoot 55% from three-point range, hitting 11 of Adna’s 12 3-pointers on the night.

“They’ve played in hundreds of AAU games, and are pretty confident players because of that,” Luke Salme said. “They aren’t nervous or scared. It’s basketball, and they just love to play and compete.

“They can shoot it, too, and that helps in this game.”

The Pirates shot the lights out as a team, finishing at 65.2% from the field after going 17 for 24 in the second half.

Lane Johnson, one of the three healthy seniors left on the Adna roster, scored nine points, and Lakoda South and Jens Neilson, the other two, both had eight, spreading the offense around.

“We played unselfish basketball tonight,” Luke Salme said. “We’re gonna be okay as long as we do that.”

Justin Jacoby led Onalaska with 14 points, while Ethan Thayer and Blaze Underhill both scored nine. The Loggers went 3 for 17 from beyond the arc themselves, and shot 32.6% from the field as a team.

The Pirates (4-0, 1-0 C2B) will take a road trip to Cathlamet to face Wahkiakum on Tuesday, while the Loggers (0-2, 0-1 C2BL) will host Rainier.