Cougars run wild in season’s first win

Published 5:17 am Sunday, December 2, 2007

After debuting in Cougar uniforms for the first time Friday by scoring 27 and 14 points apiece, it would be difficult to determine what Dustin and Devin Christiensen could do for an encore.

Their answering performance was an equally productive day against Dayville-Monument, with Dustin scoring 26 points and going 3-4 from beyond the arc, and younger brother Devin scoring 13 points with seven rebounds and a slew of assists in Echo’s 85-16 romp over the Tigers. The girls fell to Dayville-Monument 35-30 Saturday.

Coach Aaron Shepherd noted that his team – loaded with transfers and first year players – has really begun to solidify, starting with the Christiensen brothers who transferred from Hermiston this year.

“They played great today,” Shepherd said. “In the first game they kind of forced some things, but they didn’t do that today. They bring some experience and a lot of leadership. They work hard and they practice hard and they’ve helped out a lot.”

Even when Dustin – one of only three seniors – came out of the game with early foul trouble, the Cougars kept up their constant pressure and built a comfortable lead of 37-11 by halftime.

“The team came together a lot more than yesterday,” Devin Christiensen said. “Even if our top scorers are on the bench, there are some guys who can come off the bench who can get things done.”

Two of those players for the Cougars made their bids for more playing time with their performances Saturday. Junior Mike Fisher – in his first season of basketball – poured in 11 points and added 10 boards, and Colter McCallum scored the majority of his 11 points with Dustin Christiensen on the bench in the first half.

“I was expecting to get maybe six or seven minutes a game,” McCallum said. “But coach Shepherd has been putting me in a little more than I expected, which really helps with my confidence.”

D-M (0-2) 5 6 4 1 – 16

ECHO (1-1) 19 18 17 31 – 85

DAYVILLE – Kyle Hand 7, Jake Hyder 4

ECHO – Dustin Christiensen 26, Devin Christiensen 13

3-point field goals – Dayville 0-1, Echo 5-7. Free throws – Dayville 4-16, Echo 7-12. Fouls – Dayville 16, Echo 21.

Girls BasketballDAYVILLE-MONUMENT 35, ECHO 30 – In Echo, the Cougars could not hold on to a two-point halftime lead as turnovers and foul trouble got the better of Jake Bacon’s young team.

After going scoreless in the opening 7:58, Echo finally put up some points as Sydney Swaggart scored the first two of her 10 points with the buzzer sounding in the first frame.

From that point on, the Cougars looked like a completely different team.

“We started out pretty slow,” Bacon said. “The first quarter was pretty rough. But they came out and scored 14 points (in the second quarter), which was sparked by the hustle of Sydney Swaggart and Elizabeth Ferge.”

The second half was a struggle for Echo, though, as Ferge and post presence Ashley Gregerson were sidelined with four fouls apiece. In their absence Tiger guard Amanda King scored 12 of her 16 points and the visitors outscored Echo by six in the final quarter.

D-M (1-1) 10 4 7 14 – 35

ECHO (0-2) 2 14 6 8 – 30

DAYVILLE – Amanda King 16, Tiffany Hunt, 10

ECHO – Sydney Swaggart 10, Elizabeth Ferge 10

Free throws – Dayville 15-34, Echo 10-23. Fouls – Dayville 25, Echo 20. Fouled out – Hunt (Dayville), Ferge, Taylor Tarvin (Echo).

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