Confederated Umatilla Journal - Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla ...

CUJ Sports
Nixyaawii girls are Baker bound
Golden Eagles whip Jewell in play-in game
The Golden Eagles fans supported their team throughout the season, but especially in the Feb. 26
girls win over Jewell, a win that sent Nixyaawii to the Class 1A state tournament in Baker City March
3-5. The Golden Eagle girls beat Jewell 71-51 at the Eagles Nest, where fans packed the small
gym. The Nixyaawii girls had captured the Big Sky Conference title the week before in Umatilla at
the district tournament.
CUJ photo/Phinney
MISSION – The crowd started chanting
“On to State” with about two minutes
to go in Nixyaawii’s decisive 71-51
play-in win over Jewell in the Eagles’
Nest Feb. 26.
The win sent Nixyaawii (25-3) to the
Class 1A State Championships in Baker
as one of the state’s top eight teams. The
girls were slated to play Mohawk on
March 3 – the day the CUJ hit the streets.
A scrappy team that had played a
game the night before and traveled
nearly five hours through the Columbia
Gorge on game day, Jewell stuck with
Nixyaawi through the first nine minutes.
Nixyaawii went on a 10-2 run and led by
seven at halftime.
“They were what we expected, tall and
scrappy, but I didn’t expect them to make
as many shots as they did early on,” said
Nixyaawii Coach Jeremy Maddern. “We
didn’t shoot lights out, but we had so
many more opportunities to shoot with
our defense and press.”
At halftime, coaches told the girls to
fight harder under the backboard against
much taller girls.
“I liked the tempo. If we continued
I knew they couldn’t keep up and they
kind of ran out of gas,” Maddern said.
If there was any doubt about the
outcome, it ended when Kristi Miller
took two steps over the half court line
and drained a three pointer at the third
quarter buzzer to give Nixyaawii at 58-
39 edge.
Miller led all scorers with 24 points
with four three-pointers and 10 of 11
free throws. Jessica Simpson scored 19,
mostly mid-range jumpers and fast break
layins, Chelsey Minthorn had a dozen
points and likely was the team’s leader
in assists, and Kanisha Perry, perhaps
the best 5-4 rebounder in the state, had
another double-double with 10 points
and 11 rebounds.
Angel Ulm, Jewell’s 5-8 senior, scored
18 points.
As he said at the Big Sky Conference
championships, Maddern thinks the
Golden Eagles are peaking at the right time.
“We’re not always shooting lights out,
but we’re attacking. If we rebound we
can beat anybody,” he said.
Golden Eagles defend Big Sky title
By the CUJ
UMATILLA – Winning three games,
all by at least 20 points, the Nixyaawii
Community School girls won their second
Big Sky Conference title Feb. 19.
A big drum and dancers at halftime
may have helped spark the Golden
Eagles, who came from behind to whip
Ione 62-42 in the championship game.
En route to the title, Nixyaawii knocked
off South Wasco County 58-26 and beat
Dufur 52-27.
In the championship game, Ione
jumped out to a 9-0 lead and led 18-5 at
the end of the first quarter, but Nixyaawii
outscored the Cardinals 57-24 the rest of
the way.
Kristi Miller went off for 30 points, hitting
four of eight three pointers, including
back-to-back bombs from behind the
stripe that turned the momentum in the
second quarter.
“Thank goodness for Kristi,” said senior
point guard McKayla McKay.
In addition to her high-scoring effort,
Miller had nine steals and made 10 of 14
free throws.
“Those two were shots were a huge
momentum changer,” said Coach Jeremy
Maddern. “Kristi had a huge night. She
stepped up her game.”
The two threes she made at the end of
the second quarter came within a second
or two. She hit her first three-pointer then
stole the inbounds pass, squared up and
drained the second to pull Nixyaawii to
within one point at 19-18.
Miller had no fear, driving the baseline
over and over and either scored with
short jumpers or ended up at the free
throw line.
“Coach said we needed to drive more,
to get more points in the paint,” she said.
“We were nervous, excited at first. I knew
we were still in it, that we could come
back from a 13 point lead because we
never give up.”
Chelsey Minthorn, who had nine
points and led the team with seven rebounds,
said she was proud of the team
for coming from behind to win back-toback
district titles. It was Minthorn who
banged a three ball late in the second
quarter to pull Nixyaawii to within three
at 29-26.
“Our first goal was to win districts and
our next goal is taking state,” Minthorn
said. “We were nervous at first, down
The Nixyaawii girls
basketball team
won the Big Sky
Conference title
in Umatilla at the
district tournament
Feb. 18-19. They
beat Ione in the
championship game
62-42. Pictured
receiving roses after
winning the title are,
front row from left,
Chelsey Minthorn,
Kristi Miller, Jessica
Simpson, Kanisha
Perry; and back
row, assistant coach
Shalaya Williams,
Coach Jeremy
Maddern, Makayla
McKay, Tremain
Moses, Cyrene Red
Elk, Liz Wilson,
Nakeyha Watchman
and assistant
coaches Syreeta
Thomspon and Joey
Edgmand.
CUJ photo/Phinney
18-5, but it’s not the first time we’ve been
down (against Condon-Wheeler), but
we came together and knew we could
pull it off.”
Miller scored the first eight points
of the third quarter, giving the Golden
Eagles a 34-29 lead that would not be
surrendered.
See Big Sky Champs, Page 40
38 Confederated Umatilla Journal
March 2011