Pirates qualify for State ququal
The Prairie Pirates earned a state tournament berth but had to do it the hard way. On Wednesday, Feb. 25, they lost the District Championship game to Kendrick by a score of 41-64. On Thursday, Feb. 26, they bounced back to beat Lapwai 59-53 in the second place game at District. Both of those games were at Lewiston High School. Finally, on Saturday, Feb. 28, they traveled to McCall-Donnelly High School where they beat Compass Charter of Meridian 70-46 in a state play-in game.
They will open state play against Murtaugh at 5 p.m. MST at Vallivue High School in Caldwell on Thursday, March 5.
The game got off to a bad start for the Pirates as apparently one of the players was seen dunking the ball during warmup. That was a technical foul. Kendrick made both free throws and got the ball out of bounds to start the game. They made two more free throws for a 0-4 lead.
Prairie was able to tie it with a baseline shot by Patrick Schlader and a drive for a lay-up by Phil Schwartz. Kendrick then took the lead for good on a lay-up by Nathan Tweit. After a free throw by Levi Gehring, Kendrick outscored Prairie 7-14 the rest of the first quarter. Prairie’s points came on two free throws and a 3-pointer by Schlader and a lay-up by Nate Forsmann. Prairie trailed 12-23 after 1 quarter.
Kendrick added to their lead in the second quarter as they scored the first 4 points before Schwartz scored on a lay-up. After 4 more Kendrick points, Gehring scored on an inbounds play. After another Kendrick basket, Riley Shears closed out the first half with a 3-point play to make it 19-33 at the break.
Kendrick continued to pull away in the third quarter, outscoring Prairie 12-15. Prairie got a basket and a free throw from Schlader, two lay-ups from Forsmann, a 3-pointer by Gehring and a lay-up by Shears as they trailed 31-48 after 3 quarters.
Kendrick kept up the pressure in the fourth as they outscored Prairie 10-16 to win by 23.
Forsmann had a 2 baskets and two free throws in the quarter for the Pirates while Schlader and Shears each had a lay-up.
The feeling is that Kendrick wanted to make a statement as they didn’t take too kindly to getting beaten by the Pirates on their home floor and then having the Pirates celebrate it.
Schlader had a double-double for the Pirates with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Forsmann scored 12 while Shears scored 7, Gehring 6 and Schwartz 4.
Rebounding saw Kendrick with a 30-31 advantage.
Gehring had 2 steals and 2 assists.
Prairie was 16 for 49 from the field, 33%, and 7 for 11 at the line, 73%. Kendrick was 27 for 53 from the field, 51%, and 9 for 12 at the line, 75%.
Prairie     12   7 12 10 -41
Kendrick 23 10 15 16 -64
Prairie-Gehring 2-6, 1-2, 6; Shears 3-9, 1-1, 7; Schwartz 2-5, 0-0, 4; Schlader 4-13, 3-4, 12; Forsmann 5-13, 2-4, 12; VonBargen 0-1, 0-0, 0; Rehder 0-0, 0-0, 0; Quintal 0-2, 0-0, 0; Enneking 0-0, 0-0, 0; Armbrust 0-0, 0-0, 0. 3-pointers-Schlader, Gehring.
Kendrick-M. Kirkland 4-6, 0-0, 8; Silflow 4-4, 1-2, 9; Roetcisoender 2-10, 2-3, 7; Tweit 11-20, 6-7, 28; H. Kirklan 4-9, 0-0, 8; Koepp 1-3, 0-0, 2; Kimberling 0-0, 0-0, 0; Sneve 1-1, 0-0, 2; Morgan 0-0, 0-0, 0; Hix 0-0, 0-0, 0. 3-pointers-Roetcisoender.
Prairie got off to a great start in the second place game against Lapwai and then had to withstand a fourth quarter rally.
Schlader scored to open the game and Schwartz followed with a basket. After a 3 by Lapwai, Prairie finished off the first quarter with a 16-0 run. Forsmann scored 2 free throws. Schlader converted a 3-point play. Schlader made 2 more free throws. Shears hit back to back 3’s and Schlader closed out the first quarter with a 3 for a 20-3 lead.
Lapwai outscored Prairie 1-7 to start the second quarter. Forsmann scored the free throw for Prairie. The Pirates then answered with a 7-0 run. Shears scored a lay-up and then sank a 3. Forsmann added a lay-up for a 28-10 lead. Lapwai scored a 3 and a 2 to close out the half with the Pirates still on top 28-15.
Forsmann opened the third quarter with a 3-point play then Lapwai answered with a 2-9 run to cut their deficit to 9 at 33-24. Schlader had a lay-up for Prairie in that run. Prairie then put together a 7-2 run to push the lead back to 14. Schlader scored a lay-up. After 2 Lapwai free throws, Schlader scored a putback and Shears then hit his fourth 3 of the game for a 38-24 lead. After a Lapwai lay-up, Schlader and Forsmann each scored inside for a 42-26 lead. Two 3’s by the Wildcats quickly cu the deficit to 10 but Prairie closed out the third quarter with a lay-up by Forsmann and a 3 by Gehring for a 47-32 lead after 3.
A basket and then 2 free throws by Schlader to open the fourth quarter put Prairie up by 19 at 51-32. After a Lapwai basket, Shears scored to equal the Pirates’ biggest lead of the game at 19 points with 6:28 to play. Lapwai scored a pair of baskets but Schlader answered with a 3-point play for an 18 points lead with 3:57 left. Lapwai then went on a 0-13 scoring run to cut the Pirates lead to 5 with 44 seconds left. Schwartz made a free throw to break the 3+ minute scoring drought but Lapwai answered with a basket to get within 4 at 57-53 with 33 seconds to play. Prairie was able to work clock until Schwartz was fouled with 15.7 seconds left. Schwartz made both free throws for a 6-point lead and that was it for the scoring.
Schlader had a double-double to lead the Pirates as he scored 21 points and had 17 rebounds. Shears scored 16 while Forsmann scored 14. Schwartz added 5 and Gehring 3.
Prairie had a 41-34 edge on the boards. Forsmann nearly had a double-double with 9 rebounds.
Schlader had 2 steals and 3 assists while Schwartz had 4 assists and Forsmann had 3.
Prairie was 20 for 47 from the field, 43%, and 13 for 19 at the line, 68%. Lapwai was 20 for 63 from the field, 32%, and 3 for 4 at the line, 75%.
Prairie 20   8 19 12 -59
Lapwai 3 12 17 21 -53
Prairie-Gehring 1-6, 0-4, 3; Shears 6-9, 0-0, 16; Schwartz 1-3, 3-4, 5; Schlader 8-18, 4-4, 21; Forsmann 4-9, 6-7, 14; VonBargen 0-1, 0-0, 0; Rehder 0-1, 0-0, 0. 3-pointers-Shears 4, Gehring, Schlader.
Lapwai-R. Samuels 8-17, 1-2, 21; K. Samuels 1-7, 0-0, 2; McCormack 0-1, 0-0, 0; Kipp 5-16, 0-0, 11; Baptiste 0-2, 0-0, 0; Konen 3-7, 0-0, 7; Penney 2-4, 2-2, 7; Marek 2-5, 0-0, 5; Parrish 0-0, 0-0, 0; Pappan 0-5, 0-0, 0; Arthur 0-0, 0-0, 0. 3-pinters-R. Samuels 4, Kipp, Konen, Penney, Marek.
The Pirates played their first game at McCall-Donnelly since defeating Oakley in a state play-in game on their way to a state championship in 2019.
The game started slowly for the Pirates as Compass won the tap and scored a 3-pointer. Prairie got on the board at the 6:15 mark with a free throw by Schlader. After a Compass free throw, Forsmann scored a free throw and then at the 3:43 mark scored a putback to tie it. Gehring drove for a lay-up to put Prairie ahead at the 3:09 mark. Prairie never trailed again. Schwartz followed with a 3 and Forsmann scored a layup to make it 11-4. Compass scored a 3 and a 2 to get back within 2 but Schlader scored a putback for a 13-9 lead at the end of the first quarter.
A 3 by Compass to open the second cut the lead to just 1 but Schwartz answered with a 3 and Schlader followed with a drive for a lay-up for a 6-point lead. After a basket by Compass, Prairie scored 8 straight to build a 12-point lead. Schlader hit a 3 then Chase VonBargen made 2 free throws. Schwartz hit his third 3 of the game to make it 26-14. After a basket by Compass, Forsmann sank a 3. After another Compass basket it was Max Rehder’s turn for a 3 to make it 32-18 with 1:25 left in the half. Compass made 2 free throws then Forsmann scored a free throw and then a lay-up that made it 35-20 at the half.
Shears scored on a drive to open the second half and Schlader followed with a 3-point play for a 40-20 lead. After 2 Compass free throws, Gehring scored 2 free throws. Compass then scored 9 straight and 12 out of 14 to cut the lead in half to 44-34. Schlader scored Prairie’s only points in the run. The Pirates then put together their own 9-0 run. Schlader started it with a free throw. Forsmann, Gehring and Schlader each scored a basket and Schlader then added 2 free throws to make it 53-34. Compass scored a 3 to make it 53-37 after 3 quarters.
Schlader scored 4 straight lay-ups to open the fourth quarter and put Prairie up 61-37. Compass scored a pair of free throws to break their 2 minute plus scoring drought. VonBargen answered with a 3. Compass had a 3 of their own with Schlader scoring a lay-up to make it 66-42 with 4:26 to play. Compass scored a pair of baskets to cut the lead to 20 with 2:46 left. Schlader added 2 more baskets for the final points of the game.
Forsmann had a double-double and led the Pirates in scoring with 23 points and 10 rebounds. Schlader stuffed the stat sheet with 22 points, 17 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 steals. Schwartz scored 9 points. Gehring scored 6, VonBargen 5, Rehder 3 and Shears 2.
Prairie had a 35-24 advantage on the boards.
Gehring also had 3 steals.
Prairie was 26 for 58 from the field, 45%, and 11 for 18 at the line, 61%. Compass was 15 for 34 from the field, 44%, and 9 for 17 at the line, 53%.
Prairie takes a record of 18-6 into the state tournament.
Prairie                13 22 18 17 -70
Compass Charter 9 11 17   9 -46
Prairie-Gehring 1-6, 2-2, 4; Shears 19, 0-0, 2; Schwartz 3-5, 0-0, 9; Schlader 9-16, 3-5, 22; Forsmann 9-17, 4-7, 23; VonBargen 1-3, 2-4, 5; Rehder 1-1, 0-0, 3; Quintal 0-1, 0-0, 0; Enneking 0-0, 0-0, 0; Armbrust 0-0, 0-0, 0. 3-pointers-Schwartz 3, Schlader, Forsmann, VonBargen, Nuxoll.
Compass Charter-Morris 2-5, 0-0, 5; Pugh 4-4, 4-4, 13; Felgenhauer 0-1, 0-4, 0; Heffernan 1-3, 2-3, 5; Hymas 4-8, 3-4, 13; Pyburn 0-1, 0-0, 0; Hibbard 3-7, 0-0, 8; Baker 0-1, 0-0, 0; Montanez 0-1, 0-2, 0; Cafferty 0-2, 0-0, 0; Tolman 1-1, 0-0, 2. 3-pointers-Hymas 2, Hibbard 2, Heffernan, Morris, Pugh.

JV games start at 6 p.m., varsity to follow unless indicated
*indicates league game
  1-Orofino, here, lost 43-46
  5-Grangeville, there, 7:30, Idaho County Shootout , won 67-38
  8-Deary, there, won 56-23
10-JV at Clarkston JV, 6:30 p.m.
12-Troy*, here, won 75-18
18-Kamiah*, here, won 65-32
  6-Orofino, there, lost 45-54
  8-Deary, here, won 55-31
10-Potlatch*, there, C-JV-V, 1 p.m., won 67-51
13-Lapwai*, here, C-JV-V, 4:30 p.m., won 63-36
15-C vs. Clarkston, 4:30 p.m.
15-Logos*, here, won 48-29
16-Kendrick*, Quad, here, 5 p.m., lost 47-60
23-Lakeside, there, V only, 6 p.m., lost 53-68
24-Troy*, there, 1 & 2:30 p.m.  won 62-24
28-Kamiah*, there, won 47-38
29-Logos*, there, won 67-48
  3-Lapwai*, there, C-JV-V, 4:30 p.m., won 60-41
  5-Lakeside, here, V only, 6 p.m. , JV vs. Kendrick, 4:30 p.m., lost 36-62
  6-Kendrick*, there, C-JV-V, 4:30 p.m., won 53-49
12-Grangeville, here, C-JV-V, 4:30 p.m.-date changed, won 69-30
13-Potlatch*, here, Senior Night, C-JV-V, 4:30 p.m., won 50-37
21-District at Lewiston High 4:30 p.m. against Potlatch. won 58-47
25-District Championship vs. Kendrick, lost 41-64
26-District 2nd Place game vs. Lapwai, 6 p.m., won 59-53
28-State Play-In at McCall-Donnelly, 3 p.m. MST, defeated Compass Charter 70-43
March 5-7-State at Vallivue High, Caldwell, Open against Murtaugh at 5 p.m. MST, Thursday, March 5
 

16-C.V., there, 4:30 p.m.
17-Pomeroy, there, 5 p.m.
20-Kendrick, there, 5 p.m.
24-Genesee, there, 4:30 p.m.
26-Lapwai at Clearwater Park, 4:30 p.m.

  7-Nezperce, there, 4:30 p.m.
  8-Kendrick, here, 4:30 p.m.
10-11-Glenns Ferry Tournament-vs. North Fremont 10:45 a.m. Friday; vs. Lighthouse Christian at Wendell, 3:15 p.m, Friday.; vs. Notus at Wendell, 12:30 p.m., Saturday; vs. West Jefferson, 5 p.m., Saturday
13-Nezperce, here, 430 p.m.
16-Potlatch, there, V & JV, 4:30 p.m.
18-Troy (2) at Lewiston, 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.
24-Genesee, here, 4:30 p.m.
25-Potlatch, here, V & JV, 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.
27-Lapwai, here, 4:30 p.m.
28-C.V., here, 4:30 p.m.
30-District play-in, #6 at #3 and #5 at #4.

1-2-District at Orofino
8-9-State Play-Ins (best 2 of 3) at higher seed
14-16-State at Lewiston