LOVELOCK - The Winnemucca Junior High School seventh-grade boys basketball team was looking to pull off what its eighth-grade counterparts were looking to avoid.
The Warriors suffered five losses to Battle Mountain this season, including one in triple overtime and another in overtime last week. First thing first - Winnemucca had to knock off McDermitt, a team they lost to at home just six days earlier, in the semifinals.
Winnemucca (8-14) beat McDermitt 35-20 to reach the finals against Battle Mountain.
The Warriors kept the game close for a half, but the Shorthorns pulled away in the second half to win 47-21.
"It was a good year for us," said WJHS head coach Eric Peters. "I just made sure to tell the kids to remember this one and how it ended because they are going to see them next year."
Battle Mountain raced to an early seven-point lead less than two minutes into the game. The Warriors regrouped from the slow start and outscored the Shorthorns 10-3 to close the gap to 11-10. During that run, Cole Smith had four points, while Steven Bosch, Nathan Kepler and Brayden Jensen each added buckets.
Battle Mountain stretched the lead back to seven points, 17-10, but back-to-back baskets by Domonick Solis and Kepler closed the gap to 17-14 with two minutes left in the first half.
The Shorthorns scored six of the final seven points of the first half to up the margin to eight. Battle Mountain used a 12-4 run in the third quarter and 12-2 spurt in the final six minutes of the game to earn the win.
Smith led Winnemucca with six points; Jensen added five, Kepler and Solis four each and Bosch two.
Winnemucca was looking to avenge its loss to McDermitt, and with the aid of a 7-0 run in the second quarter, the Warriors were able to build a double-digit advantage in the semifinal matchup.
McDermitt cut the deficit to eight points at one time in the second half on the strength of an 11-point third quarter, but the Warriors defense stepped up in the final six minutes of the action and held the Cougars to two points.
Jensen led all scorers with 13 points, while Bosch and Solis contributed seven and six points, respectively. Kepler scored five and Ren Mattson and Smith each had two points.
Winnemucca traveled to Fallon on Tuesday, Dec. 11, and lost 47-24 to the Greenwave. The Warriors played with just six players for the final eight minutes of the game as Bosch and Jensen fouled out in the third quarter.
Fallon led 31-23 entering the fourth quarter and outscored the short-handed Warriors 16-1 in the final six minutes of the game.
Bosch and Jensen scored 10 and seven points, respectively, while Solis had four, Peyton Capellen two and Smith one.
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