Bulldog hoop squad blasts off new season

Colfax boys blasted off for the new basketball season over the weekend by booking two big wins against non-league foes from the SE neighborhood. The Bulldogs crunched Pomeroy 82-38 Friday night in the home opener and came back Saturday to defeat a fast-moving Oakesdale team 58-32 in an afternoon game.

Colfax will travel to Burbank Friday and then return home Saturday to play St. George's. The game against the Dragons will be a non-leaguer because the NE hoop campaign, like football run, will be divided in two divisions.

St. George's last year rolled up a 26-0 record and went all the way to the 2B title game where they were derailed by Kittitas-Thorp.

Colfax Coach Reece Jenkin has a lineup of five seniors on the team with Carson Cloaninger, league MVP last year as a junior, leading the pack.

The Bulldogs are cranking up the season after losing six seniors from last year's 19-7 club. The Bulldogs last year advanced to the state show in the Spokane Arena for the first time since 2013 and were stopped in the Wednesday play-in round.

Players graduating off the state return squad included Jaydon Soncarty, Caleb Berquist, Brett Kincaid, Cal Gregory, Chase Baerlocher and Austin Ring.

Also back as seniors this year are Cameron Hiatt, Bennett Gray, Bryan Rubin and Kelan Becker.

Five juniors on the roster are Hunter Claassen, Cole Baerlocher, Gavin Hammer, Gunnar Aune and Cotton Booker.

John Lustig, a 5-11 guard, is the one underclassman on the crew this year.

Friday against Pomeroy, Colfax cooked a 21-5 lead in the first quarter and led 55-25 at the half. Cloaninger picked up where he finished last year with seven three-pointers for the game, and the scoring went down the roster with Lustig hitting five in his first high school game.

Becker, who will key the Colfax inside game at 6-5, finished with 13 and Hiatt hit 12.

Pomeroy bounced back the next night with a 52-45 win over DeSales.

Saturday at Colfax, the speedy Nighthawks under Coach Carl Crider stayed with the Bulldogs with a 13-15 score after the first quarter, but then the score went to 32-17 at the half.

Cloaninger hit five treys against Oakesdale and finished with 26 points.

Kieron Anderson led the 'hawks with 15.

Colfax 82-Pomeroy 28: 21/5 24/20 22/9 15/4: Hunter Claassen 2 (3pt) 2-2 7, Cameron Hiatt 4 (3-3pt) 1-2 1 2, Bennett Gray 2 (3pt) 0-0 5, Cole Baerlocher 1 (3pt) 2-3 5, Carson Cloaninger 10 (7 3pt) 4-4 31, John Lustig 2 (3pt) 5, Gavin Hammer 1 0-0 2, Kelan Becker 6 1-1 13, Cotton Booker 1 0-0 2. Total: 29 10-12 f-16 82. Pomeroy: Ryan Snyder 2 (3 pt) 0-0 5, Trent Gwinn 1 (3pt ) 2-2 5, Aiden Berglund 3 (2 3pt) 0-0 8, Jace Gwinn 3 5-9 11, Evan Bartels 0 5-6 5, Drew Mayes 1 0-0 2, , Tyson Kimbel 0 2-2 2. Total 10 14-20 f-12 38.

Colfax 58-Oakesdale 32: 15/13 17/4 18/2 8/13: Hiatt 2 (3pt) 1-1 6, Gray 4 (3-3pt) 0-0 11, Baerlocher 1 (3pt) 0-0 3, Bryan Rubin 1 (3pt) 0-0 3, Hammer 1 0-0 2, Cloaninger 9 (5 -3pt) 3-4 26, Hammer 1 0-0 2, Becker 3 1 2 7. Total 21 5-8 f-15 58. Oakesdale: Evan Henning 2 0-0 4, Kieron Anderson 5 (3pt) 4-6 15, Kit Hockett 2 3-7 7, Simon Anderson 1 0-1 2, Gavin Shrope 1 0-0 2, Ryan Henning 0 2-3 2. Total: 11 9-17 f-9 32.