Three area teams help kick off inaugural I-5 Holiday Tournament.
WHAT TO KNOW
■ The Battle of I-5 Holiday Tournament makes its debut this weekend at three of our schools. Cottage Grove, Creswell, and Pleasant Hill, along with Marist Catholic, host four other Class 4A and below schools: Douglas, Santiam Christian, Stayton, and Taft. The tournament will be held Thursday-Saturday, with the championship games on Saturday at 5 p.m. at Creswell for the boys and Cottage Grove for the girls.
BEST FIRST-ROUND MATCHUPS
■ Boys: No. 11 Douglas at No. 10 Creswell, Thurs., 6:30 p.m.
■ Girls: No. 2 Stayton at No. 30 Pleasant Hill, Thurs., 5 p.m.
TEAMS TO WATCH
BOYS
■ Class 3A No. 4 Pleasant Hill (4-1); Class 4A No. 13 Marist (2-1); Class 3A No. 10 Creswell (3-2)
GIRLS
■ Class 4A No. 2 Stayton (3-0); Class 3A No. 16 Creswell (3-2); Class 4A No. 15 Cottage Grove (3-1)
PLAYERS TO WATCH
BOYS
■ Gavin Inglish, Pleasant Hill, junior, guard, 2022/23 Mountain Valley Conference Player of the Year, 1st-team all-state.
■ Jace Page, Douglas, senior, wing, 2021-22 honorable mention all-state.
■ Tyler Whitson, CHS, junior, guard, 2023 14.6 ppg, 6.8 rpg.
GIRLS
■ Claire Crawford, Pleasant Hill, junior, 2022-23 Mountain Valley Player of the Year, 1st-team all-state.
■ Dakota Carson, Creswell, senior, 2023 11.8 ppg,
■ Mariah Bailey, CGHS, sophomore, guard, 2023 15.3 ppg.
PIERRE’S PREDICTIONS
■ Boys: Pleasant Hill over Creswell in championship match
■ Girls: Stayton over Creswell in championship match
SCHEDULE
Thursday
■ Boys: Taft at Cottage Grove 6:30 p.m.; Douglas at Creswell, 6:30 p.m; Stayton at Pleasant Hill, 6:30 p.m.
■ Girls: Taft at Cottage Grove, 5 p.m.; Douglas at Creswell, 5 p.m.; Stayton at Pleasant Hill, 5 p.m.
Friday-Saturday
■ Boys & Girls: Matchups and times TBD
