Cardinal Boys' Varsity and JV Basketball

The Cardinal boys' basketball team lost to Oakesdale on Friday, January 23, and played well but lost to Tekoa-Rosalia on Saturday, January 24, in their last home game of the season.

Against Oakesdale, Waitsburg held its opponent to eight points in the first quarter and was only down by nine at halftime before frustration set in, and the team went from competitive to mad and flat-footed.

In the 54-26 loss, Blake Benevides scored ten points, and Landen Henry scored eight for the Cardinals.

Saturday, January 24, was senior night for the Waitsburg boys. The four seniors, Logan Seal, Victor Whitmore, Teegan Kenney, and Benevides, got to start in their last home game.  

The boys got off to a slow start but battled back after being down by 18 points. The crowd watched an exciting third and fourth quarter as the boys cut the Tekoa-Rosalia's lead to two points. The Timberwolves held on to win the game 49-41.

Kenney rebounded well in the second half and was more aggressive in the paint than he has been, and Benevides scored 26 points for the Cardinals.

Coach Westin Wallace said he was proud of his team this season. They had games where they won by a lot, lost by a lot, and last week they won in overtime.  Saturday night, they had a game where they crawled back to narrow their opponent's lead.

"Hopefully, for the younger kids who are outsized physically, take this as a lesson for the rest of their careers, and our seniors as a lesson for their lives. We have to work hard all the time, and it's better to go down swinging than to give up," said Wallace.

The JV team lost to Oakesdale 27-15 in two quarters of basketball. Bryer Paul led the team with nine points.

Karen Huwe

JV boys play defense against Tekoa-Rosalia (l-r): Ollivyr Dahlby, Jake Lynch, Carsyn Pennington, Arrow Groom, and Cody Coulston.

The JV team finally got to play four quarters of basketball on Saturday against Tekoa-Rosalia. The team added two eighth-graders, Arrow Groom and Ollivyr Dahlby.

The boys had good energy in the fourth quarter, and despite the 41-28 loss, the Cardinal boys realized the difference between positive and negative energy and how that can change the game.

Jake Lynch led the JV team with 14 points.

The Waitsburg basketball team will finish its season on the road next weekend. They travel to St. John-Endicott on Friday, January 30, and play their last game against Dayton on Saturday, January 31.