Redmond outlasts Wilsonville in OT for historic win, 5A girls semifinal date with Silverton
McMINNVILLE — Redmond continues to reach new girls basketball heights under first-year head coach Alex Carlson.
Competing in their first state quarterfinal since 2003, the underclassman-led Panthers played like veterans and outlasted Wilsonville in overtime, 45-39, Thursday afternoon in 5A state tournament action at Ted Wilson Gymnasium.
Redmond hadn’t won a playoff game in the past 15 years before defeating Putnam in the round-of-16, and the Intermountain Conference champions are now in the state semifinals for the first time in program history.
“It’s really exciting,” said sophomore point guard Mylaena Norton. “Our coach just believes in us so much, so it’s the best feeling ever to come into that locker room afterward and have him be so excited for us. Because when he first saw us practice coming into the program as a new coach, he knew we could do it. It’s just super exciting to have someone that believes in you that whole way.”
The Panthers (22-4) returned their entire roster from last season’s team that finished 13-11 and missed the postseason. A competitive opening-night loss to Crater showcased Redmond’s growth, and the team went on to secure its first IMC title since 2019.
With one more victory, Redmond would hit the 23-win mark for the first time in the past 20 seasons.
“I knew we had a talented group, I knew we had great kids, but this is something that’s been building for a long time,” Carlson said. “This group has a lot of great people who have put a lot of time and effort into getting them here.”
The fifth-seeded Panthers used their full-court pressure to build a 13-point third-quarter advantage before No. 4 Wilsonville (20-7) stormed back. Neither team could break a 37-37 tie in the final 2:33 of regulation.
Redmond led wire-to-wire in overtime as freshman forward Freya Snow netted the first three points of the extra period. A tough layup by Norton with 58 seconds remaining extended the lead to 42-38, and the Panthers closed it out from the free throw line.
Carlson said it was a “huge” victory not only for the team, but for the entire community.
“Redmond is a very traditional town, and Redmond is the old-school program in the town,” the coach said. “We really wear that as a badge of honor, saying we represent Redmond, we represent our community and the type of community we have. A rural, tough-nosed community, and those are the type of kids we have. When we leave, our kids are going out to feed (the animals) before they get on the bus. They’re showing up with that attitude and take a lot of pride in representing Redmond.”
Junior guard Dylan Cheney made four 3-pointers and led Redmond with 18 points and seven rebounds. Norton added eight points and four steals, and Snow put up nine points, 12 rebounds and four steals.
“I constantly think, ‘Man, I’d like to see the eighth-grader that was trying to guard her last year,’” Carlson said of Snow.
Gabi Moultrie had nine points and four assists for the Wildcats, who shot 16 of 53 (30.2 percent) from the field while turning it over 29 times. Redmond finished 17 of 57 (29.8 percent) with 25 turnovers in the defensive rock fight.
“We’ve got some really good defenders on our team,” Cheney said. “Girls who want to work really hard, no matter what, all the time.”
The Panthers scored the first six points as Wilsonville started 0 for 7 from the field. The Wildcats fought right back with a 10-2 run, but Cheney drained a buzzer-beating 3-pointer that put Redmond up 11-10 after one quarter.
The two teams netted seven points apiece in a defensive second quarter that ended with the Panthers ahead 18-17.
Redmond opened the third on a 13-1 run that was capped by a Snow basket for a 31-18 lead. Wilsonville again answered with eight consecutive points, and Lily Scanlan's coast-to-coast layup in the final seconds made it 33-30 heading to the fourth.
“You just remind them that we’re playing championship-level teams here,” Carlson said of Wilsonville’s scoring spurt. “They’re going to make runs and we don’t need to think we’re doing anything too awful wrong when good players make good plays. And they’ve got a lot of really good basketball players that aren’t going to back down.”
Moultrie drilled a 3-pointer to pull the Wildcats even at 35-35 midway through the fourth as both offenses sputtered down the stretch. Redmond scored 14 points in the final 15-plus minutes of action, but that was enough to advance.
“I think it’s about our team chemistry,” Norton said. “We all love each other so much, we all work for each other. For example, some people didn’t have the game they wanted to have tonight, but we all pulled through and had each other’s backs. That’s the biggest piece, I think.”
Added Carlson: “We have a ton of respect for Wilsonville, their personnel, what they do and their whole program. We were just thrilled that we could come out with a victory, especially on a day we didn’t shoot it well.”
In Thursday’s first quarterfinal, Portland State signee Kyleigh Brown dominated with 26 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and four steals as top-seeded Silverton held off No. 8 Mountain View, 53-40.
Grace Hayashida added 12 points for the Foxes (22-4), who placed fourth at last year’s state tournament.
Kasey Booster led the Cougars (19-7) with 15 points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals. Teammate Avery Andrews finished with 14 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Redmond and Silverton will meet in a semifinal at 6:30 p.m. Friday.
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Photos by Leon Neuschwander
