SALEM, Ore. — Rainier began defense of its Oregon 3A state girls basketball title by holding off Sheridan 48-45 in an opening-round game at Willamette University on Thursday.

The Columbians (23-5) finished 29-0 last season in winning the first state championship in program history.

Mollee Schwegler led all scorers with 19 points and made 3-of-4 free throws in the final 20 seconds to help overcome the Spartans (19-10). The win moved Rainier into a 6:30 p.m. semifinal matchup Friday night against powerful Santiam Christian (25-1).

Santiam Christian defeated upset-minded Vale 55-52.

The game was tight the entire way, with Rainier enjoying eight-point leads in the first and second quarters, and a six-point cushion in the third. But Sheridan fought back to make it a one-point game heading to the fourth and tied 42-42 it on a jumper by Amber Moser with 3:42 remaining.

Kayla Nagunst answered for the Columbians with a jumper at the 2:15 mark to make it 44-42, and Jennifer Hinkle and Schwegler combined for four free throws down the stretch.

Nagunst and Amanda Schwegler scored 10 apiece for the Columbians, and Diamond Harkleroad pulled down six rebounds.

Columbians 48, Spartans 45

RAINIER (48) — Amanda Schwegler 10, Kayla Nagunst 10, Diamond Harkleroad 2, Jessica Minium 2, Mollee Schwegler 19, Beth Murphy 2, Jennifer Hinkle 3, Tianna Gibson 0, Heather Crape 0.

SHERIDAN (45) — Hanna Ellis 6, Emma Buchholz 12, Alyssa Ogle 6, Amber Moser 13, Chelsei Hall 8, Lisa Eckstrom 0, Bethany Dickey 0.

Rainier          16   13     7   12 — 48

Sheridan      13   15     7   10 — 45

Stone, Hope lift Toledo

YAKIMA — Kelsey Stone’s free throw in the closing seconds of regulation sent the game into overtime, and Brittany Hope’s freebie midway through the extra session put Toledo ahead to stay as the Indians beat King’s 58-53 in a consolation game of the Class 1A state girls basketball tournament at the Yakima SunDome on Thursday.

Toledo (18-6) faces La Center in a consolation game at 12:30 Friday. The winner advances to the fifth-place game on Saturday.

The Indians led 38-35 entering the fourth quarter, but King’s went on a run to take the lead early in the period. Toledo rallied from a six-point deficit with 3:40 left in regulation, and Stone hit the first of two free throws with seven seconds left that tied the game at 51-51.

Stone missed the second free throw, and King’s couldn’t hoist a shot before the end of regulation.

In the extra session, Hope’s free throw broke a 53-53 tie with 2:27 left, Stone added two freebies a minute later, and Tiffany Tornow hit a pair with 23 seconds left to seal the win.

Tornow led the Indians with 16 points, with Hope adding 14.

Indians 58, Knights 53

KING’S (53) — Karlie Storkson 13, Makenzie Taylor 11, Dionna Kirton 10, Kelli Cutright 9, Joclyn Kirton 4, Allison McConnaughey 3, Laura Friar 3, Christina McCormick 0, K.C. Berg 0.

TOLEDO (58) — Tiffany Tornow 16, Brittany Hope 14, Kelsey Stone 6, Candi Zion 6, Brianna Votaw 5, Ashlee Coffey 4, Lacey Scott 4, Haley Hellem 3, Nicole Ewers 0, Sara Buswell 0, Lia Lucas 0.

King’s      11   11   13   16     2 — 53

Toledo       6   17   15   13     7 — 58

BOYS BASKETBALL

Cards roll over Highland

YAKIMA — Winlock used a strong third quarter to pull away from Highland as the fifth-ranked Cardinals claimed a 60-48 victory over the Scotties in a consolation game of the Class 1A state boys basketball tournament at the Yakima SunDome on Thursday.

Winlock (22-3) plays Columbia-Burbank in a loser-out game at 11 a.m. Friday. The Coyotes eliminated Ilwaco 56-39 on Thursday.

Nathan Booth played all but a minute for the Cardinals, scoring a game-high 27 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Tyler Hertz played every minute and scored 11 points, and Jordan Davis and Jake Brown added nine apiece. Davis also grabbed 12 rebounds and Hertz made five steals.

Winlock took a 12-10 lead in the first quarter and was up 25-23 at halftime. The Cardinals, who made 46 percent of their shots in the third quarter (6-of-13), outscored the Scotties 16-8 in the period to take a 41-31 lead into the final eight minutes.

The Cardinals made 26-of-42 free throws, compared to 4-of-8 shooting at the stripe for Highland.

Cardinals 60, Scotties 48

HIGHLAND (48) — Patrick Newman 24, Joel Weise 8, Trent Fuller 6, Scott Podruzny 4, Jovanny Ramos 3, Brandon Hyde 2, Eric Perez 1, Mathew Newman 0, Julio Pulido 0, Kenny Hampton 0, Tyler Hakala 0, John Hein 0.

WINLOCK (60) — Nathan Booth 27, Tyler Hertz 11, Jordan Davis 9, Jake Brown 9, Tyler Diamond 4, Collin Kupers 0, Mike Kent 0, Angel Sanchez 0, Nick Hoven 0, Tyler McCarthy 0, Matt Hoven 0, Bryson Coleman 0.

Highland      10   13     8   17 — 48

Winlock       12   13   16   19 — 60

C-B ends Ilwaco’s season

YAKIMA — A cold-shooting first quarter was more than Ilwaco could endure as the Columbia-Burbank Coyotes rolled to a 56-39 victory over the Fishermen in a consolation game of the Class 1A state boys basketball tournament at the Yakima SunDome on Thursday.

The loss ends Ilwaco’s season at 16-11. Columbia-Burbank faces Winlock in a loser-out game at 11 a.m. Friday.

The Coyotes held Ilwaco to 1-of-7 shooting (14 percent) in the first quarter as they grabbed a 10-2 lead. Columbia-Burbank led 22-12 at halftime, and held a 41-25 advantage entering the last eight minutes.

Jack Whealdon led the Fishermen with 12 points.

Coyotes 56, Fishermen 39

ILWACO (39) — Jack Whealdon 12, Karl Oman 9, Kolby Kirby 8, Cody Bliss 4, Ryan Kukula 3, Patrick Whealdon 3, Justin Short 0, Chris Schommer 0, Kyle Breckenridge 0, Bobby Byrd 0, Ross Kary 0.

COLUMBIA-BURBANK (56) — Nick Byrd 23, Trevor Lott 14, Jordan Rada 13, Neal Schuck 3, Seth Shelton 2, Dyllon Smith 1, Nathan Roberts 0, Jon McGreevy 0, Chad Davis 0, Sam Shelton 0.

Ilwaco                    2   10   13   14 — 39

Col-Burbank       13     9   19   15 — 56

Sheridan ousts Rainier

SALEM — A strong third quarter for Sheridan, coupled with lackluster play in the second half by Rainier, was disastrous for the Columbians as they dropped a 50-45 decision in a loser-out game at the Oregon Class 3A state boys basketball tournament at Willamette University on Thursday.

The loss ended Rainier’s season at 20-8.

Rainier’s defense held Sheridan to 17 percent shooting (4-of-23) in the first half as the Columbians rolled to a 25-15 lead at halftime. The Spartans made 36 percent of their shots in the second half (8-of-22), and converted 20-of-26 free throws.

“We played great in the first half and had everything clicking,” Rainier coach Joe Neill said. “They (the Spartans) changed their defense in the second half and went to a full-court man-to-man, and we had some turnovers.”

Sheridan, which made 26-of-35 freebies compared to 2-of-9 for Rainier, outscored the Columbians 36-20 in the second half.

“They really outscored us at the free-throw line and that was a big difference,” Neill said. “They were really aggressive and hit their free throws.”

Brandon Cataldo led Rainier with 16 points and four blocked shots. Jake Drabandt added 14 points, eight rebounds and four steals, and Riley Tripp had nine points.

“Our goal this season was making it to the state tournament, and this was a great experience for us,” Neill added. “The guys are a little disappointed they aren’t playing for a trophy.”

Spartans 50, Columbians 45

SHERIDAN (50) — Greg Butler 11, Tre Hale-Edmerson 11, Steven Grauer 9, Niko Rentsch 9, Brock Ingram 6, Patrick Mitchell 2, Taylor Grauer 2, Jhon Mount 0, Beau Bradford 0, Phillip Hartman 0.

RAINIER (45) — Brandon Cataldo 16, Jake Drabandt 14, Riley Tripp 9, Curtis Kauffman 4, Daryl Paddock 2, Tyler Yeoman 0, Jeff Schiedler 0, Nathan Stecker 0.

Sheridan         9     5   21   15 — 60

Rainier           12   13     9   11 — 45