Mavs fall in heartbreaker against Sunnyside

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Mavericks concluded their season Saturday evening with a 51-69 loss to Sunnyside in the state play-in game. The match was hard-fought, but ultimately the opposition pulled out ahead to punch their ticket to state. 

“Sunnyside came to play; they came out hitting on all cylinders,” said Mavericks Head Coach Craig Groth. “We were set behind in the first part of the game, and we didn’t have quite enough opportunities to catch up.” 

The Mavs were pressured in the first quarter as Sunnyside came into the game with intensity and kept up a strong offensive presence. Despite Moses Lake’s efforts, the Mavs trailed by 10 at the end of the quarter.  

In the second quarter, the Mavs applied more pressure on both sides of the ball, but the opposition outscored Moses Lake to end the half 26-38. 

Coming back from halftime, MLHS pushed to keep their season alive through high-energy offense, but once again Sunnyside maintained control of the game to outscore the Mavs. This continued into the fourth quarter, where, despite the Mavs’ strength on the court, they just couldn’t close the gap, and Sunnyside claimed victory. 

“Every time we did something good they did a good job of countering,” said Groth. “We were never really able to get any momentum going from our side.” 

Brady Jay led the Mavs offensively scoring 26 points in the matchup. Moses Lake stayed in the game through the defensive efforts of Kyre Wiltbank and Grady Walker, who consistently applied pressure on Sunnyside’s shooters. 

Groth said while this was a hard loss for Moses Lake, it was also a tough reminder that in any game it is important to never take things for granted. While the Mavs had previously earned wins at home over Sunnyside this season, a game at home against a familiar opponent in the postseason is never an assured victory. 

“There’s no guarantees for tomorrow. You’ve got to show up and give it your best every single day,” he said.  

With the Mavs’ season coming to a close after Saturday’s game, Groth said the team did a great job growing together throughout this season. With each passing practice and matchup, he felt the boys all did a great job building off each other and having strong team chemistry. 

“Those kids built lifelong friendships from the team,” said the coach. “They’re a tremendous group of kids and it’s an honor to coach each and every one of them.” 

Groth said he commended the hard work each of the Mavs players put into this season as they gave their all in both practice and on the court. While the season didn’t end the way they wanted it to, as a coach he was very proud of what he saw from each of them. 

MLHS will be graduating eight seniors in the offseason: Carter Andreson, Brady Jay, Tyce Miller, Grady Walker, Theo Kalasountas, Kaden Dominguez, Andrew Levy and Kyre Wiltbank.  

Each senior has been in the program for all four years of their career and showed consistent growth in the sport, the coach said.  

“They definitely will be missed, but they did a good job of helping out the younger players, challenging them, getting them to grow,” said Groth. “They leave their legacy to help build the foundation for years to come.” 

After completing two seasons in a row with a winning record, the coach said he feels the returning players each season are seeing how much their hard work is paying off year after year.  

The waves being made at the varsity level are also making their way down to the underclassmen as they become inspired to achieve the level of play that the previous varsity players earned. Groth said he is seeing excitement and success from JV all the way to the D-team players as they strive to work just as hard. 

“There’s a lot to get excited about in the future; they keep working hard, and a lot more good things will happen,” he said.  

BOX SCORE:  

SUNN: 22-16-18-13: 69 

MLHS: 12-14-12-13: 51 

    Kyre Wiltbank, a senior from MLHS, shoots a three-pointer during Saturday’s matchup against Sunnyside.
  

    Moses Lake senior Grady Walker looks for an opening in the Sunnyside defense Saturday as the team fights for a ticket to state.
  

    MLHS senior Carter Anderson makes a push for the net as he tries to get through a Sunnyside defender during Saturday’s game.
  

    Mavs Head Coach Craig Groth works with his team on the sideline Saturday evening.
  

    Tyce Miller, a senior from the Mavs rushes down the court after gaining possession of the ball during Saturday’s game against Sunnyside.