No. 4 Comets survive shaky shooting performance by senior leader Taylor Young to clinch a 5A state trophy
Crater put the typical motto of “survive and advance” to the test in breakfast-bracket play at the Class 5A girls basketball state tournament Friday morning, outlasting Silverton for a 51-49 victory at Linfield University in McMinnville.
Faced with her first-ever elimination contest in state tournament play, senior leader Taylor Young struggled to find the mark and the No. 4-seeded Comets survived a disjointed performance overall to secure a spot in Saturday’s fourth-place final.
Crater (22-5) will face No. 7 Crook County (19-8) at 9:45 a.m. Saturday after the Cowgirls edged Wilsonville, 62-60, in Friday’s other consolation semifinal.
The reigning 5A state player of the year missed her first six shots and seemed to be pressing from the start in an effort to almost single-handedly will Crater to a third game at the tourney. Whereas Young and her cohorts did well Thursday to not necessarily settle for 3-point shot opportunities, showing patience to pull the ball back and attack the defense, Friday’s effort was full of bombs away approaches from beyond the arc as Silverton settled back to ensure the Foxes (19-9) kept the Comets in front of them defensively.
Young, who has signed with Oregon State, went 2-for-11 from the field — 1-for-6 from 3-point range — in the opening half and finished with a season-worst shooting total by going 7-for-34 overall and 3-for-15 from 3.
Young did pinball around a bit in the paint on a few probing shots, but consolation games notoriously allow a little extra to keep the clock moving and let the overall play dictate the outcome. In comparison, Young tallied 36 points in Thursday’s tournament opener by connecting on 13 of 22 shots (1-for-4 from 3-point range).
The saving grace for Young was a 12-for-14 showing from the free-throw line as she managed 29 points overall, including a go-ahead steal and layup with 2:17 remaining to give Crater a 50-49 lead. The 5-foot-8 star later went 1-for-2 from the foul line with six seconds left, and full-court pressure kept Silverton from getting a shot off thereafter in what was a rematch of the 2024 state final.
As consolation semifinals are apt to have after teams see their championship dreams fade the night before, neither team was particularly efficient or ever truly in a groove, which made for a nip-and-tuck battle.
Silverton led by as many as eight points in the second quarter before a half-ending 3-pointer by Brynlee Young allowed the Comets to carry a 28-27 advantage into the break. Crater’s largest lead was four points midway through the third quarter, but the Foxes roared right back and seemed to have things in hand with a six-point lead and just under four minutes remaining.
That’s when senior Autumn Jackson maybe came up with the play of the tournament for the Comets, with her defensive pressure resulting in a steal and ensuing layup for Jackson’s only shot (and basket) of the tournament.
That sudden shift seemed to shake Silverton, which did not score again for the remainder of the game while Crater gradually chipped away with an all-told 8-0 run kickstarted by Jackson.
Young pulled up for a 3-pointer in transition with 2 ½ minutes remaining, then picked the pocket of Foxes freshman Chloe Kuschnick for the go-ahead score.
Defensive rebounds by Haley Plankenhorn, McKenna Hyatt, Brynlee Young and Jazmine Fernandez allowed Crater to cut short Silverton’s final possessions. The Foxes went 0-for-7 from the field over the final half of the fourth quarter.
In an about-face from Thursday’s heartbreaking loss to West Albany in the quarterfinals, it was Taylor Young’s teammates who were more accurate from the field. The group combined for 45% shooting (9-for-20).
Brynlee Young, a freshman, helped lead that charge with eight points, six rebounds and two blocks, while the senior Fernandez had six points and five rebounds and sophomore Plankenhorn pulled in seven boards with two steals.
Despite the rough shooting day, Taylor Young contributed six rebounds, three assists and four steals to help Crater advance.
Kuschnick, a promising freshman, had 13 points and eight rebounds for Silverton, and junior Karlee Martirano had 12 points and nine boards. The Foxes went 19-for-53 (35.8%) from the field and committed 18 turnovers.
Silverton 13 14 13 9 — 49
Crater 12 16 10 13 — 51
Reach sports editor Kris Henry at kris.henry@rv-times.com or 458-488-2035