Girls make playoffs

BURNEY – The Burney Raiders had the misfortune of scheduling the Etna Lions for their Winter Carnival celebration. Never get in the way of a hungry Lion.
While the Lion boys were on the prowl for a Shasta Cascade League title, the Lady Lions were just trying to stay in the hunt for a playoff spot. Both captured their prize.
In the boys’ contest, the Raiders came out fired up and raced to a 9-1 lead. Etna responded with a 9-0 run, and had the lead 10-9 at the end of the first quarter.
The game remained competitive through the second quarter with the Lions taking a 24-20 lead into the locker room.
The second half was a different story as the Lions outscored the Raiders 17-8 in the third quarter to lead 41-28 going into the final frame. Etna dominated the fourth quarter and earned a 52-32 win, as well as the SCL crown.
Skyler Schneider led the Lions with 15 points. Beau Branson put up 14, and Logan Dysert added 10 points.
For the Etna Lady Lions, the situation was simple. Win or start softball practice.
The Lady Raiders put up a stiff fight right from the beginning of the game, and the teams were knotted 10-10 at the end of the first quarter. By half time, the Lady Lions had taken the lead 20-17.
They increased their lead to 28-22 by the end of the third quarter. The game remained close until the last couple of minutes, but Etna was able to sink key free throws, including a pair by Beth Langford, and go on to win 41-30. Etna finished the regular season 10-15 overall, 3-9 in the SCL, and 9-9 in Division V.
Tracy Thackeray had s strong all-around game with 12 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 steals. Annaleisa Nadig registered a double-double with 10 points and 18 rebounds. Beth Langford contributed 9 points and 4 steals, and Lindsay Stacher pulled down 10 rebounds.
The boys’ win gave them a 10-2 record in the SCL, 15-10 overall, and 12-6 in Division V. However, the NSCIF seeding committee was anything but kind to the Lions. Etna and Weed were each ranked seventh in the division. Etna automatically jumped over SCL foe Weed by virtue of winning the league. The seeding committee then moved ninth ranked Tulelake into the top eight teams on the basis of the Honkers winning the Evergreen league, as required by section rules. Then, Tulelake was moved ahead of Etna into the seven-seed presumably on the basis of the Honkers early season win over an undermanned Etna squad missing their top two offensive players.
The seeding committee apparently gave little or no weight to the relative strength of the two leagues. The SCL is composed of two D-IV schools and five D-V schools, while the Evergreen League is composed entirely of D-VI schools, except D-V Tulelake. Etna also had a better division record and higher strength of schedule ranking. Eighth seeded Etna will host ninth-seeded Durham (9-16) on Wednesday, Feb. 20.
On the other hand, just making the playoffs was cause for celebration for the Lady Lions. Ranked sixteenth with a 7-8 division record, Etna needed to win two out of their three remaining division games just to be eligible for the playoffs. After falling to eventual SCL co-champion Fall River. The Lions defeated Modoc 55-35, and then got the win over Burney in the final regular season game, which gave them a 15-seed and a first round match up with second seeded Hamilton (21-4) on Tuesday, Feb. 19.